VALLEYFIELD, Quebec, Canada--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 15, 2007--W. R. Grace & Co. (NYSE:GRA) is marking the 50th anniversary of its manufacturing facility in Valleyfield, Canada.

The facility is comprised of two manufacturing plants, a modern analytical lab and administrative offices that are currently staffed by 115 people. Construction began on the site in 1956 with production commencing the following year. Today the facility develops many high-performance products, including catalysts used by petroleum refiners that help "crack" the hydrocarbon chain in distilled crude oil to produce transportation fuels, and additives used to reduce sulfur in gasoline and reduce emissions. The facility is operated by Grace Canada, Inc.

Grace President and CEO, Fred Festa, and other senior executives of Grace will be in Valleyfield to visit City Hall for a meeting with Mayor Denis Lapointe and other local officials, and to celebrate the occasion with employees and members of the community at the Grace facility.

"Our Valleyfield facility is an important asset to Grace," said Festa. "The site is closely linked to our global research and development community and is often selected to develop new processes that enable us to optimize production while combining efficiency with safety."

In conjunction with the celebration, Grace is presenting a $12,000 donation to Foundation du Centre Hospitalier Regional du Suroit, a local hospital, as part of a five year, $60,000 grant.

In addition to the anniversary, the facility is also celebrating the recent certification of its implementation of Grace's Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) Management System. The Valleyfield facility is the first Grace location worldwide to earn this certification, which involved a multi-step audit of the facility's EHS activities by a third-party registrar. The EHS Management System sets performance expectations to ensure continuous EHS improvement and addresses hazards and risks, training and communication, operational controls, compliance management, community and product stewardship, and periodic internal reviews. The EHS Management System also extends to customers, suppliers and other companies that are components of the chemistry supply chain.

"This certification was only possible as a result of dedication from each employee," remarked Paul Dupuis, Plant Manager of the Valleyfield facility. "We will continue the hard work necessary to continually improve and integrate EHS in our business processes. I consider this certification as a milestone in our journey to become world class in EHS and make Grace Valleyfield an injury-free, environmentally-responsive workplace."

The facility adheres to the principles of Responsible Care(R), a global initiative of the International Council of Chemical Associations, initially launched in Canada in 1985.

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.

    CONTACT: W. R. Grace & Co.
             Media Relations (U.S.)
             Greg Euston, +1 404-870-6809
             greg.euston@mslpr.com
             or
             Media Relations (Canada)
             Patricia Haworth, + 1 450-373-4224
             patricia.haworth@grace.com

    SOURCE: W. R. Grace & Co.