The management and employee representatives of BASF SE have concluded a new site agreement with the title “Shaping the Future for a Strong Site.”

The agreement is intended to run for five years. It will initially apply for three years, from January 1, 2026, to December 31, 2028, for employees of BASF SE at the Ludwigshafen site. It will automatically be extended by a further two years if the agreed targets for restoring profitability are achieved.

The new site agreement addresses the current challenges facing the chemical industry. In an economically and geopolitically challenging environment, the agreement focuses on the competitiveness and adaptability of the site.

It lays the foundation for structural changes, protects employees from compulsory redundancies, and sends a strong signal for investment and partnership-based cooperation. Ludwigshafen remains central to BASF’s long-term success as its largest Verbund site.

Key contents of the agreement include:

• Job Security: BASF will refrain from compulsory redundancies for the duration of the agreement.

• Investments: BASF will continue to invest in the Ludwigshafen site and further develop it to be Europe’s leading sustainable chemical site. BASF intends to invest around €2 billion annually in Ludwigshafen (at least €1.5 billion) to enable modernization and expansion of infrastructure, capacities, and the sustainable transformation of the site.

• Transformation and Flexibility: The sustainable transformation and safeguarding of the site’s competitiveness will bring changes for all employees. This includes simplifying the organization, increasing flexibility, using digitalization and artificial intelligence for continuous productivity gains, and consistently focusing on sustainable cost optimization.

• Modern Working Time Management: Working time management will be further developed, and digital tools will support personnel deployment.

• Promotion of Performance and Development: The agreement promotes a performance culture and specifically focuses on the qualification and further development of employees. A shared understanding of learning as part of everyday work, modern learning formats and targeted qualification offerings ensure employability and the innovative strength of the workforce.

• Health and Quality of Life: BASF invests in health programs and promotes individual preventive healthcare as well as mental health. BASF creates sustainable mobility solutions, such as expanding e-charging infrastructure and promoting the use of public transport. The company is also committed to education, equal opportunities and social cohesion in the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region.

• Reliable Framework and transparent Communication: The agreement creates clear framework conditions for implementing the transformation and provides for regular reviews of its implementation. Management and the works council are committed to a solution-oriented dialogue.

“The new site agreement is the result of constructive negotiations between management and employee representatives,” says Katja Scharpwinkel, member of the Board of Executive Directors and industrial relations director, BASF SE. “It enables necessary changes and flexibility and supports the return to competitiveness at the Ludwigshafen site. At the same time, it provides guidance and reliability in an environment characterized by change. A period of at least three years without compulsory redundancies creates reliability for implementing our transformation projects.

“We will also continue to invest in Ludwigshafen – this shows that the site has a future, and our employees make a decisive contribution with their expertise and experience,” adds Scharpwinkel.

“The tough negotiations were worth it: The central importance of the Ludwigshafen site with production, research and development, marketing, specialist departments, infrastructure and services is ensured by concrete investments, and employees are protected from compulsory redundancies during the term of the agreement,” notes Sinischa Horvat, chairman of the Works Council, BASF SE.

“Given the persistent structural and economic challenges, this outcome was is by no means a foregone conclusion,” Horvat observes. “But in the end, it is a clear commitment to the site, to the employees – who are the key to success – and an expression of confidence that together we can get BASF SE back on track for success. When we start 2026, our minds will again be able to focus on the major structural challenges we need to tackle.”