Scheuble succeeds Langmann / Changes at Merck

Retirement of Schröder Darmstadt (ots) - Prof. Dr. Hans Joachim Langmann (74) will hand over his chairmanship of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA in the middle of 2000. As announced by the company, Prof. Dr. Bernhard Scheuble (45) will succeed him as CEO of the Merck Group. The Board of Partners of E. Merck gave its approval to this decision on Tuesday. Prof. Langmann remains Chairman of the Executive Board of E. Merck. This company holds the Merck family's capital share (74 per cent) in Merck KGaA. Since Prof. Langmann also remains Chairman of the Family Board he continues as the top representative of the Merck Group. Under Prof. Langmann's management, Merck has developed since 1963 from a company mainly operating in Germany with annual sales of DM 300 million to an internationally operating group of companies with annual sales amounting to DM 8.1 billion. Prof. Scheuble, who joined the company in 1982, is among the pioneers of Merck's liquid crystals business and has been General Partner and Member of the Executive Board of E. Merck and Merck KGaA since 1997. He heads the Pharmaceuticals business sector, for which he will continue to be responsible also in the future. Dr. Harald J. Schröder (60), Vice Chairman of the Executive Board of the Merck Group and General Partner of E. Merck and Merck KGaA, will retire at his own request when his contract terminates at the end of 1999. The Board of Partners and the Executive Board have approved this request to their considerable regret. Dr. Schröder will retain his office, however, as President and Delegate of the Board of Directors of the central Merck holding company, Merck AG in Zug, Switzerland. Dr. Schröder has been at Merck for 10 years and heads Accounting and Controlling, Central Purchasing, Information Services and Corporate Internal Auditing. A decision on his successor has not yet been taken. ots Original Text Service: Merck KGaA Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: Merck KgaA Mr Riede phone: 06151/ 72 71 09 Subscribers please note that material bearing the slug "PROTEXT" is not part of CTK's news service and is not to be published under the "CTK" slug. Protext is a commercial service providing distribution of press releases from clients, who are identified in the text of Protext reports and who bear full responsibility for their contents. PROTEXT