Sydney Desalination Plant Runs with Dow Technology

DOW FILMTEC™ RO Membranes Helping to Ensure Quality Drinking Water for 1.5 Million Residents

Philadelphia, PA - May 19, 2010

As Australia’s largest desalination plant, Sydney now joins the ranks of other coastal cities in Australia to use seawater desalination as a sustainable and rainfall-independent route to providing drinking water for its metropolitan area.

Dow Water & Process Solutions, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, supplied approximately 36,000 DOW FILMTEC™ reverse osmosis (RO) elements to the new, efficient desalination facility which was officially inaugurated on April 19, 2010.

The energy demand of the Sydney plant is offset by wind-generated electricity and uses advanced water treatment technologies to reduce energy consumption. DOW FILMTEC™ elements will help to convert 250,000 cubic meters - or 250 million liters - of seawater per day into potable water thus providing approximately 15 percent of Sydney’s water supply needs.

"This project confirms the growing interest in and support for desalination as a reliable and economically viable way to produce clean water in drought-prone, high-population areas," says Ian Barbour, general manager, Dow Water & Process Solutions. "For us at Dow, it's a validation of our ongoing efforts to advance water treatment technologies that allow people to solve issues critical to their well-being and needs."

The advanced membrane technology from Dow Water & Process Solutions helps communities worldwide to broaden their water sourcing options, and DOW FILMTEC™ components help desalination be an economically viable method of treating seawater to address global water shortages. Dow technology plays a key role in three of the world's five largest desalination projects, including the plants in Tampa Bay, Fla., USA; Ashkelon, Israel; and Perth, Australia.

For more information on DOW FILMTEC™ SWRO components, please visit our website www.dowwaterandprocess.com/sw.

About Dow Water & Process Solutions

Dow Water & Process Solutions has a 50 year legacy of providing innovative water and process solutions to both communities and industries alike. A differentiated business unit of The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries, Dow Water & Process Solutions offers a broad portfolio of ion exchange resins, reverse osmosis membranes, ultrafiltration membranes and electrodeionization products, with strong positions in a number of major application areas, including industrial and municipal water, chemical processes, pharmaceuticals, power, residential water and waste and water reuse. More information about Dow Water & Process Solutions can be found at www.dowwaterandprocess.com.

About Dow

For Editorial Information:

Katya Chistik Hantel
GolinHarris for Dow Water & Process Solutions
+1 312 729 4219
khantel@golinharris.com