Nynas Assumes Marketing and Sales of Naphthenic Output from LYONDELL-CITGO Refining.

HOUSTON -- Nynas USA, Inc. today announced that it will begin purchasing all of the naphthenic lubricant oils produced by LYONDELL-CITGO Refining LP (LCR) effective September 1, 2006.

The arrangement will provide Nynas with more than 3,000 barrels per day (145,000 metric tons per year) of naphthenic lubricants from the Houston refinery's lubricants units. This means Nynas will be the new provider of these products to the Houston refinery's customer base, which was previously serviced by CITGO Petroleum Products.

"Nynas is already the world's leading supplier of naphthenic specialty oils, with a strong global presence," said Jay Flint, president, Nynas USA, Inc. "This transaction is an important next step in our proven commitment to servicing a growing worldwide customer base with the latest naphthenic oils."

Nynas, which opened its U.S. sales office in 2003, is also engaged in a joint-production facility with Valero at the company's Three Rivers Refinery in Texas. There, it has invested technology and capital to upgrade the quality and output of the facility's naphthenic products. It also operates a naphthenics specialty refinery in Nynashamn, Sweden -- and has a partnership with ISLA refinery at Curacao.

"Nynas foresees a continued growing worldwide demand for naphthenic specialty oils, largely because the number of oil applications requiring highly refined products has surged in recent years," said Tomas Wallin, senior vice president of AB Nynas Petroleum and chairman of Nynas USA Inc. "Meanwhile, areas such as rubber and tire compounding are experiencing a growing interest in naphthenics, which meet increasingly stringent regulatory requirements. All of this means that Nynas is well poised to continue its impressive business momentum."

LCR became a wholly owned subsidiary of Lyondell Chemical Company (NYSE:LYO) on July 31, 2006, when Lyondell purchased CITGO Petroleum Products' interest in the Houston refinery, which will soon be known as Houston Refining, LP. The Houston refinery processes 268,000 barrels-per-day of crude oil and has about 900 employees. Lyondell Chemical Company, based in Houston, is one of the world's largest chemical companies, with approximately $16.4 billion in assets and operations on five continents.

About Nynas

Nynas is one of the most successful specialty players in the international-oil market. The 75-year-old company is the well-established leader in naphthenic and bitumen products. Nynas's annual revenues total $1.8 billion. It has operations across the globe -- including corporate offices and distribution facilities in Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Australia. The company, with 800 employees, operates three refineries in Europe. It also has joint ventures or partnerships with Shell, UK, Petroplus, Belgium and Switzerland, Neste Oil, Finland, PDV Curacao and Valero, USA. Nynas is owned by Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. and Neste Oil Oyj. For more information, visit www.nynas.com.