AkzoNobel Issues Statement on the Conflict in Ukraine

AkzoNobel issued the following statement on the war in Ukraine:

“Like so many, we are deeply saddened and worried by the conflict in Ukraine.
Now, as always, the highest priority for us is the safety and well-being of our employees. We are in contact with our people and offering as much support as possible to all those affected, in order to keep them and their families safe. In difficult times like this, it’s important that we work together, help each other and remain strong as one AkzoNobel – regardless of nationality or background.

“Our business in Ukraine and Russia is limited, representing about 2% of our revenue. However, we do have 17 colleagues in Ukraine and 640 colleagues in Russia for whom we are responsible. We mainly supply daily consumer products such as decorative paints and packaging coatings, including antibacterial coatings for hospitals and pipe coatings used for supplying drinking water. AkzoNobel fully complies with all measures and sanctions that are being put in place and will continue to closely monitor the situation.

“However, even non-sanctioned activities in Russia are affected as the whole chain from suppliers to customers is being disrupted. We are evaluating the situation daily and overall it is becoming more and more difficult to continue business activities. We expect our operations to slow down gradually and most of our business could come to a halt in the next few months.

“We will continue to provide all our employees with whatever we can to support them in these difficult times, as safety, integrity and sustainability are the core values of AkzoNobel. We’ve also launched a company-wide donation-matching campaign to help provide humanitarian aid for Ukraine, with €250,000 being raised in the first month. The money has been handed over to our partner, the Disaster Emergency Committee. The initiative will carry on throughout April, when the company will continue to add three times the amount donated by employees.

“This comes on top of the €140,000 donated by our European Decorative Paints organization. In addition, our colleagues have launched various local initiatives, which have resulted in funds being donated to our partner, SOS Children’s Villages, and accommodation being provided for refugees. The company is also supporting volunteer efforts from employees, which range from sorting out paperwork and helping refugees find shelter, to donating paint for renovating temporary shelters.”