LUDWIGSHAFEN, Germany—Chemicals giant BASF S.E. plans to cut as many as 500 jobs worldwide by the end of 2015 in response to the European economic downturn.
The Germany-headquartered company said the majority of the job losses would take place in Switzerland as it sought to make its Performance Products division—which includes plastic additives, pigments and resins, water, leather and textiles—more competitive. The company also supplies the polyurethane and elastomers industries.
BASF said its plastic additives business would see the introduction of a more market-oriented approach.
Focusing on a network of what it called global competence centers, BASF said its research office in Basel, Switzerland, would be scaled back, and there would also be less need for the administrative services provided by its business center, located in the same city.
This restructuring would result in up to 350 positions being lost in the Basel area, the group said, with alternative positions being found for as many of those affected as possible.
Remaining job cuts would occur in BASF's pigments and resins business