Cabot's Microelectronics Materials Division Opens New Slurry Manufacturing Facility in Geino, Japan, to Meet Increasing Customer Demand.

GEINO, Japan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 11, 1999--

New Plant Will Enable Direct Service to Customers Throughout

Asia-Pacific Region

Cabot Corporation's Microelectronics Materials Division, the pioneer and leading global supplier of chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) slurries, today announced the opening of its new 4,000-square-meter facility in Geino, Mie Prefecture, Japan.

The Geino facility, which will produce CMP slurries that are used in the manufacture of advanced integrated circuits (ICs), was built to meet the growing demand for Cabot's high-purity slurries by chipmakers throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

"As the global demand for our slurries continues to escalate, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, we believe it's important to provide direct service to our customers here," stated Matthew Neville, Cabot MMD's vice president and general manager.

"The Geino facility allows us to improve delivery time and overall product support to meet these needs. This investment clearly demonstrates our strategy of expanding ahead of demand to serve the global CMP market -- one of the fastest growing segments of the semiconductor industry," Neville added.

During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Samuel W. Bodman, Cabot's chairman and chief executive officer, said, "Cabot's investment in this facility confirms our commitment to customers in this important region. Historically, Cabot has built its reputation by fostering long-lasting customer relationships and providing service and support in the communities in which our customers are concentrated."

Hiro Nishiya, Cabot MMD Japan business manager, will oversee the new facility, including the supervision of the manufacturing plant and the administrative infrastructure. Nishiya believes Cabot's presence in Japan is vital to its customers. Nishiya noted, "Cabot's customers will realize a dramatic benefit by having closer one-on-one relationships with their slurry supplier."

The Geino site is Cabot's fourth slurry production facility, complementing its existing CMP slurry plants in the United States (Aurora, Ill. and Hammond, Ind.) and Europe (Barry, Wales). The facility provides the capacity necessary to serve the entire CMP slurry demand in the Asia-Pacific region. The new facility is located in the Oaza-Kitakoyama Industrial Park, Geino, Age-Gun, Mie Prefecture, Japan.

Masayasu Kitagawa, governor of Mie Prefecture, stated, "We actively promote our prefecture as an ideal location for global corporations offering advanced technology, research and development. Cabot Corp. is an excellent example of the type of corporation we wish to attract. We hope this facility will promote an international exchange of goodwill and have a significant impact on the local business community, including the hiring of more than 40 local workers."

About Cabot MMD: Cabot Corp. Microelectronics Materials Division (www.cabot-corp.com/mmd), Aurora, Ill., is the leading global supplier of CMP slurries for polishing oxide, tungsten, copper and aluminum used in semiconductor manufacturing processes, and commands more than an 80 percent share of these markets.

Established in 1995, Cabot MMD is a business unit of Cabot Corp. (NYSE:CBT), a 116-year-old global specialty chemicals company headquartered in Boston, Mass. In 1998, Cabot Corp. had revenues of $1.6 billion.