Exhibit 99
[Solutia logo] NEWS
SOLUTIA INC.
575 Maryville Centre Drive
St. Louis, Missouri 63141
P.O. Box 66760
St. Louis, Missouri 63166-6760
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MEDIA: Glenn Ruskin (314) 674-3804
SOLUTIA ANNOUNCES CHANGES IN LEADERSHIP
Jeffry N. Quinn Named President and Chief Executive Officer;
Luc De Temmerman Named Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer;
James M. Sullivan Named Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer;
John F. Saucier Named President of Integrated Nylon Division;
Paul H. Hatfield Appointed Non-Executive Chairman of the Board
ST. LOUIS - MAY 5, 2004 -- Solutia Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board:
SOLUQ), a leading manufacturer and provider of performance films, specialty
chemicals and an integrated family of nylon products, today announced
several changes in its senior management, effective immediately.
Jeffry N. Quinn, Solutia's current Senior Vice President, General
Counsel and Chief Restructuring Officer, has been named President and Chief
Executive Officer. Mr. Quinn has also been elected to the Company's Board of
Directors.
Luc De Temmerman, the current Vice President and General Manager of
Solutia's Performance Products division, has been named Senior Vice
President and Chief Operating
Officer. Mr. De Temmerman will remain the head of the Performance Products
division and assume broader enterprise-wide responsibilities.
James M. Sullivan, the Company's current Vice President and
Corporate Controller, has been named Senior Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer.
Solutia also announced that John F. Saucier, currently Vice
President and General Manager of the Company's Integrated Nylon division,
has been named President of the Integrated Nylon division.
De Temmerman, Sullivan and Saucier will report to Mr. Quinn.
Finally, Solutia announced that Paul H. Hatfield, a member of
Solutia's Board of Directors since 1997, has been elected non-executive
Chairman of the Board, succeeding Mr. Hunter who has been Solutia's Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer since 1999.
Mr. Quinn and Mr. Sullivan will succeed John C. Hunter and Robert
A. Clausen, respectively, both of whom have announced their intention to
retire from Solutia effective May 31, 2004.
On behalf of Solutia's Board of Directors, Mr. Hatfield said, "This
is an important juncture in Solutia's history. The Company will continue to
need proven, talented and focused leaders who are not only capable of
dealing with the complex challenges we face today, but also have the ability
to build an enduring future for the Company. The Board is confident that it
has
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those leaders in this new top management team. They are each experienced
executives and possess broad and deep knowledge of our businesses. Their
collective experience and knowledge will provide a strong foundation for
this Company as it pursues a strategic plan for the future."
Mr. Hunter added, "This is clearly the right team to lead Solutia
at this critical time. Jeff, in particular, has a proven history of
successfully handling challenging situations and his experience in that kind
of environment will be invaluable to Solutia in the important weeks and
months ahead as the Company restructures itself for a successful emergence
from Chapter 11."
Mr. Quinn stated, "This is an exciting opportunity for me and the
other members of the new leadership team. There is no question that
Solutia's situation presents many challenges. However, we are anxious to
meet those challenges. We look forward to the opportunity to refocus and
re-energize this Company, and ultimately to bring it out of Chapter 11. We
intend to do whatever it takes to achieve those goals and make this Company
a success."
Mr. Quinn continued, "I believe in Solutia and its people. I look
forward to partnering with Luc, Jim and John to lead Solutia. We are very
excited about the opportunity to work closely with Paul Hatfield, a seasoned
executive with many years of experience, and a proven record of performance.
Knowing that we will be able to call on his knowledge and expertise, along
with the knowledge and expertise of our entire Board, gives me great
confidence and optimism about our future. Working with our Board and our
creditors, I am confident that we can maximize the value of Solutia."
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Mr. Hatfield expressed the entire Company's gratitude to Mr. Hunter
and Mr. Clausen for their leadership and service to Solutia during their
tenures. "Everyone at Solutia is grateful to John and Bob for all they have
done for this Company. We wish them well."
Prior to joining Solutia in 2003, Mr. Quinn, 45, was Executive Vice
President, Chief Administrative Officer, Secretary and General Counsel of
Premcor Inc., one of the nation's largest independent oil refiners, with
responsibilities including the legal, human resources, governmental and
public affairs activities, and strategic planning functions. Before joining
Premcor, he was Senior Vice President of Law and Human Resources, Secretary
and General Counsel of Arch Coal, Inc., the nation's second largest coal
producer. He obtained a B.S. degree in engineering from the University of
Kentucky in 1981, and a J.D. degree from the University of Kentucky School
of Law in 1984.
Luc De Temmerman, 49, has led Solutia's Performance Products
division since the beginning of 2003 and has been with Solutia since it was
spun off from the former Monsanto Company in 1997. Prior to that, he worked
for the former Monsanto Company for thirteen years. At Monsanto he worked in
several North American and European locations performing technical,
marketing and commercial functions. Mr. De Temmerman holds a Master of
Sciences degree in Chemical Engineering and a doctorate in Applied Sciences
from the University of Leuven, Belgium, and a degree in Business
Administration from Brussels University, Belgium.
Mr. Sullivan, 43, has served as Solutia's Vice President and
Controller since 2000 and has been with Solutia since it was spun off from
the former Monsanto Company in 1997. Prior
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to that, he worked in the former Monsanto Company's finance organization for
over thirteen years. He graduated from St. Louis University in 1983 with a
degree in Business Administration and earned a M.B.A. from Washington
University in 1994.
Mr. Saucier, 50, has served as Solutia's Vice President and General
Manager of Integrated Nylon since 2001 and prior to that was the Company's
Vice President for Strategy and Growth. He joined Monsanto in 1979 and held
various positions in the engineering, manufacturing and marketing areas. He
has B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of
Missouri, and a M.B.A. from Washington University.
Mr. Hatfield, 68, has been a member of Solutia's Board of Directors
since 1997. He is a Principal of Hatfield Capital Group, a private
investment company. He served as Chairman, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Petrolite Corporation until July 1997. Previously, he worked for
Ralston Purina Company from 1959 until his retirement in 1995. He served as
a Vice President of Ralston as well as the President and Chief Executive
officer of Protein Technologies International, Inc., then a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Ralston. He serves as a Board member of Bunge Limited, Maritz
Inc. and Stout Industries. Additionally, Mr. Hatfield is Chairman of the
Board of Penford Corporation and Chairman of the Board of Boyce Thompson
Institute for Plant Research. He is also a member of the Advisory Board for
International Institute for Plant Research.
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENT
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-
looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and
other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to
be materially different from the future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by the forward-
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looking statements. Assumptions and other important factors that could cause
our actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in our
forward-looking statements include, among other things: (i) the ability of
Solutia to develop, prosecute, confirm and consummate one or more Chapter 11
plans of reorganization; (ii) the potential adverse impact of the Chapter 11
filing on Solutia's operations, management and employees, and the risks
associated with operating businesses under Chapter 11 protection; (iii) the
ability of Solutia to comply with the terms of the DIP financing facility;
(iv) world economic conditions, competitive pressures, gain or loss of
significant customers, labor relations and disruption of operations, raw
material and energy costs, currency and interest rate fluctuations, success
in implementing pricing actions and managing spending, operating rates, cost
of debt, environmental compliance and remediation and other factors; (v)
customer response to the Chapter 11 reorganization; and (vi) the risk
factors or uncertainties listed from time to time in Solutia's filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission and with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in
connection with the Company's Chapter 11 filing. Other factors and
assumptions not identified above are also relevant to the forward-looking
statements, and if they prove incorrect, could also cause actual results to
differ materially from those projected.
CORPORATE PROFILE
Solutia (http://www.Solutia.com) uses world-class skills in applied
chemistry to create value-added solutions for customers, whose products
improve the lives of consumers every day. Solutia is a world leader in
performance films for laminated safety glass and after-market applications;
process development and scale-up services for pharmaceutical fine chemicals;
specialties such as water treatment chemicals, heat transfer fluids and
aviation hydraulic fluid and an integrated family of nylon products
including high-performance polymers and fibers.
Solutia ... Solutions for a Better Life.
Source: Solutia Inc.
St. Louis
Date 5/5/04
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