Grace Announces Sale of Its Washcoat Business to Rhodia Silcea

Business Wire, August 2, 2007

COLUMBIA, Md. -- W. R. Grace & Co. (NYSE:GRA) has announced that it has completed the sale of its washcoat product line and Cincinnati, Ohio site assets to Rhodia Silcea. Grace's washcoat products are used primarily in the manufacture of automotive control catalysts, an integral component of catalytic converters for engines. The silica production based at the Cincinnati facility has been transferred to Grace's Curtis Bay, Maryland site.

"Since the decision to evaluate our washcoat product line, we are investing in the necessary processes and capital to establish Good Manufacturing Practices-compliant operations at Curtis Bay, one of our largest manufacturing facilities," said Gregory E. Poling, President, Grace Davison. About 700 employees are based at Curtis Bay, which includes integrated manufacturing operations across most of Davison's product lines, as well as a world-class technical center. "We are building upon the site's foundation of silica expertise, extensive functional support, and employee engagement to design a world-class operation that delivers premier quality products for our pharmaceutical, dentifrice, and consumer products customers. We are committed to meeting the needs of our global customers who depend on the quality that Grace Davison products are known for."

Grace is a leading global supplier of catalysts and other products and services to petroleum refiners; catalysts for the manufacture of plastics; silica-based engineered and specialty materials for a wide range of industrial applications; specialty chemicals, additives and materials for commercial and residential construction; and can sealants and coatings for food packaging. With annual sales of more than $2.8 billion, Grace has about 6,500 employees and operations in over 40 countries. For more information, visit Grace's web site at www.grace.com.

This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as statements that are preceded by, followed by or include the words "believes," "plans," "intends," "targets," "will," "expects," "anticipates," "continues," or similar expressions. For such statements, Grace claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results might differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements include: Grace's bankruptcy and proposed plan of reorganization, Grace's legal proceedings (especially the Montana criminal proceeding and environmental proceedings), the cost and availability of raw materials and energy, Grace's unfunded pension liabilities, costs of environmental compliance, risks related to foreign operations, especially, security, regulation and currency risks and those factors set forth in Grace's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, quarterly report on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, which have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and are readily available on the Internet at www.sec.gov. Reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date thereof. Grace undertakes no obligation to publicly release any revisions to the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement, or to update them to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this announcement.