In its constituent meeting on June 10, the Supervisory Board of Brenntag AG unanimously elected Doreen Nowotne (47) as its new Chairperson. Nowotne will be taking over from Stefan Zuschke (57), who has chaired the Supervisory Board since March 2010 and who resigned at his own request from Brenntag AG’s Supervisory Board as of the end of the General Shareholders’ Meeting earlier today.

On being elected Supervisory Board Chairperson, Doreen Nowotne stated: “I would like to thank my fellow Board members for the confidence that was shown towards me and look forward to this new challenge. At the same time and on behalf of the entire Supervisory Board, I would like to thank Stefan Zuschke for all that he has done for Brenntag. He supported the Board of Management with prudence and commitment and played a key role in the very successful development of the company, from Brenntag's IPO in 2010 to its current position as global market leader in chemical distribution.”

Stefan Zuschke also commented: “I would like to congratulate Doreen Nowotne on her election as Supervisory Board Chairperson. Particularly under the current challenging circumstances, the company has demonstrated its solid position and fundamental strength. >Project Brenntag<, which was initiated by our new CEO Christian Kohlpaintner, also points in the right direction. This is a good time to pass on responsibility to a new Supervisory Board Chairperson.” Supervisory Board members Stefanie Berlinger, Dr. Andreas Rittstieg and Doreen Nowotne were re-elected by a large majority, while Richard Ridinger was elected to the Supervisory Board for the first time.

In addition, shareholders at the General Shareholders’ Meeting resolved to convert Brenntag AG to the legal form SE (Societas Europaea, meaning European company). The corresponding agenda item was passed with 99.87 percent of the voting capital in attendance in favor. Brenntag sees the SE legal form as fitting best with its modern corporate culture. People from more than 100 nations work at Brenntag, around 90 percent outside Germany. The conversion stands for the global outlook and identity of the Brenntag Group. By converting to the SE legal form, the company will be able to continue its targeted growth and the successfully established corporate governance structure in its dualistic management system (Supervisory Board and Board of Management). The conversion will take effect with the entry in the commercial register, which is scheduled for the second half of the year.

The actions of the Board of Management members were ratified by 99.8 percent of the voting capital in attendance and those of the Supervisory Board members by 96.37 percent. The General Shareholders’ Meeting also approved the proposal to pay out a dividend of €1.25 per share.