HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kraton Polymers LLC (Kraton) announces the appointment of Karen A. Twitchell to its Board of Directors, effective December 3, 2009. Ms. Twitchell will serve on the Company’s Audit Committee. Ms. Twitchell was also appointed to the Board of Directors and will serve on the Audit Committee of Kraton’s parent company, Polymer Holdings LLC.

“We are pleased to have Karen Twitchell bring her corporate and financial leadership to our Boards,” said Dan F. Smith, Chairman of Kraton’s and Polymer Holdings’ Boards of Directors. “Karen has significant experience in the chemicals and materials industries, and will certainly be a very knowledgeable and insightful director.”

Ms. Twitchell was Vice President and Treasurer of LyondellBasell Industries and Lyondell Chemical Company (a predecessor by merger to LyondellBasell) from 2001 to 2009. She previously served as Vice President of Kaiser Aluminum Corporation from 1998 to 2000 and, additionally, as Treasurer from 1996 to 2000. Prior to that, she served as Vice President at Southdown, Inc. from 1994 to 1996 and, additionally, as Treasurer from 1989 to 1996. Before joining Southdown, Ms. Twitchell was an investment banker with Credit Suisse First Boston in its corporate finance department. Ms. Twitchell holds a B.A. in Economics from Wellesley College and an M.B.A. from Harvard University.

About Kraton

Kraton is a leading producer of styrenic block copolymers, or SBCs, a family of performance polymer products whose chemistry it pioneered over 40 years ago. SBCs are highly engineered synthetic elastomers which enhance the performance of numerous products by delivering a variety of performance-enhancing characteristics, including greater flexibility, resilience, strength, durability and processability. Kraton currently offers approximately 800 products to more than 700 customers in over 60 countries worldwide, and is the only SBC producer with manufacturing and service capabilities on four continents. Kraton manufactures products at six plants globally, including its flagship plant in Belpre, Ohio, as well as plants in Germany, France, The Netherlands and Brazil, and a joint venture operated plant in Japan. Kraton, the Kraton logo and design, and the “Giving Innovators their Edge” tagline are all trademarks of Kraton Polymers LLC.

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