Albemarle Corporation, a global supplier of fine chemistry services (FCS) for pharmaceutical, agricultural and specialty chemical products, announced today it is building a state of the art kilo lab in Louvain la Neuve, Belgium. The facility will give Albemarle’s European customer base convenient access to local product development capabilities to better serve their needs. The facility is expected to be operational by the third quarter of 2010  .

The new laboratory will contain the highest quality processes and safety features and have capabilities up to and including 50-liter glass lined vessels. The centrally located facility will yield enhanced customer collaboration through all stages of research and development for Albemarle’s European customer base  .

“A critical focus for Albemarle’s FCS team is to support the efficient development of complex multi-step synthesis’ for our customers,” said Steve LeVan, Division Vice President – Fine Chemistry Services. “Our new lab gives our European customers a convenient way to increase collaboration and consultation with Albemarle scientists, ultimately accelerating the process from idea stage to commercialization.” Albemarle’s FCS division is a global provider of products, custom manufacturing and process scale-up services to a wide variety of markets including pharmaceuticals, crop protection and specialty chemicals. The new kilo lab will strategically support FCS’s multiple existing cGMP and custom manufacturing facilities  .