Crompton Completes Divestiture of Refined Products Business

Crompton Corporation (NYSE: CK) today announced that the
company has completed the divestiture of its Refined Products business
to Sun Capital Partners Group Inc.
   "We are very happy to announce the completion of this transaction,
which we believe will benefit all parties," said Crompton Chairman and
CEO Robert L. Wood. "Refined Products is a very good business, but
does not fit in with our strategy to concentrate on our core specialty
chemicals and polymer products businesses. We are confident it will
prosper with Sun Capital Partners Group Inc."
   Refined Products had 2004 revenues of approximately $265 million.
Included in the sale are facilities in Petrolia, Pennsylvania; and
Amsterdam, Koog aan de Zaan and Haarlem, the Netherlands. The business
employs approximately 470 people.
   Refined Products is the world's largest dedicated supplier of
white oils, petrolatums, microcrystalline waxes and other refined
hydrocarbons. The products are used for personal care items, such as
creams and lotions, cosmetics and pharmaceutical ointments, as well as
for food processing, agricultural dust suppression, polymer
processing, telecommunications wire and cable, and air-conditioning
and refrigeration lubricants.
   Crompton Corporation, with 2004 sales of $2.5 billion, is a
producer and marketer of specialty chemicals and polymer products.
Additional information concerning Crompton Corporation is available at
www.cromptoncorp.com.
   Sun Capital Partners Inc., a leading private investment firm,
focuses on leveraged buyouts and investments in middle market
companies that can benefit from its in-house operating and management
experience. Sun Capital affiliates have invested in more than 80
companies since Sun Capital's inception in 1995, with combined sales
in excess of $18 billion. Sun Capital has offices in Boca Raton,
Florida; Los Angeles; New York; and London. More information about Sun
Capital Partners is available on their Web site at:
http://www.SunCapPart.com.

   Forward-Looking Statement

   Certain statements made in this release are forward-looking
statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not
limited to, general economic conditions, the outcome and timing of
antitrust investigations and related civil lawsuits to which the
Company is subject, the ability to obtain selling price increases,
pension and other post-retirement benefit plan assumptions, energy and
raw material prices and availability, production capacity, changes in
interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates, changes in
technology, market demand and customer requirements, the enactment of
more stringent environmental laws and regulations, the ability to
realize expected cost savings under the Company's cost reduction
initiatives, the amount of any additional earn-out payments from GE,
the ability to reduce the Company's debt levels, the risk that Great
Lakes and the Company's businesses will not be integrated
successfully, the risk that the cost savings, cash flow synergies and
other synergies from the merger transaction may not be fully realized
or take longer to realize than anticipated, potential disruption from
the merger transaction making it more difficult to maintain
relationships with employees, customers or suppliers, competition and
its effect on pricing, third party relationships and revenues, the
failure of the stockholders of either the Company or Great Lakes to
approve the merger transaction, and other risks and uncertainties
detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. These statements are based on the Company's estimates and
assumptions and on currently available information. The
forward-looking statements include information concerning the
Company's possible or assumed future results of operations, and the
Company's actual results may differ significantly from the results
discussed. Forward-looking information is intended to reflect opinions
as of the date of this release and such information will not
necessarily be updated by the Company.