Solutia Anticipates Special Pretax Charges in '08

St. Louis, MO, May 28, 2008--Solutia Inc. said it expects to record pretax charges of between $45 million and $60 million over the next four years as a result of the planned closure of rubber chemicals operations at a Wales facility.

This fiscal year, the closure should reduce income from continuing operations by $3 million to $7 million before income taxes, the company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Severance and employee benefits are expected to comprise between $17 million and $22 million of the total charges.

Closing the facility will reduce annual revenue by about $50 million, Solutia said.

Last week, Solutia said that its Flexsys subsidiary plans to shut down operations at its rubber chemicals manufacturing facility in Ruabon, Wales, by the end of 2008, blaming increasing competition from Asia.