Announcements

RB Press Release - 13/12/10
RB Buys India’s Paras Pharmaceuticals Ltd

Reckitt Benckiser Group plc (RB) today announces that it has agreed to buy Paras Pharmaceuticals Limited (Paras) forINR 32.6 billion (Indian Rupees) (approximately GBP 460 million) from the current shareholders, including the Patel family and Actis, the emerging markets private equity investor. RB will finance the transaction from existing facilities.

Paras is a privately-owned Indian company with a portfolio of leading Indian over the counter Health and Personal Care brands including:

• Moov, the No 2 topical analgesic pain ointment,
• D’Cold, the No 2 cold & flu remedy,
• Dermicool, the No 2 for prickly heat,
• Krack, the No 1 medicated skin treatment for cracked heels and
• Itch Guard and Ring Guard anti fungal creams.

In addition, Paras has a personal care business led by Set Wet, a leading hair gel and deodorant brand.

In the fiscal year ending March 2010, Paras generated net sales of INR 4,014 million, representing a mid-teens average growth rate over the last four years, and operating EBITDA for the same year of INR 1,083 million (approximately GBP 56 million and GBP 15 million respectively).

The company has a brand new state of the art and GMP compliant manufacturing plant located at Baddi in Northern India, which employs around 700 people.

Commenting on the acquisition, Reckitt Benckiser CEO, Bart Becht, says, “The acquisition of Paras is another step forward in RB’s growth strategy in consumer health care. It creates a material health care business in India, one of the most promising health care markets in the world with the addition of a number of strong and leading brands.”

“We believe the Paras business has not only extremely good growth potential, when supported by RB’s investment and innovation strength, we also expect to realize material synergies as a result of the integration of Paras into Reckitt Benckiser.”

“The growth potential of the business, the creation of a material health care business in India’s large and growing health care market and the global synergies available make Paras an exciting addition to our portfolio and attractive opportunity for our shareholders.”

RB was advised by JPMorgan. Actis and the other Paras shareholders were advised by Morgan Stanley.

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Notes to Editors:

About Reckitt Benckiser plc
Reckitt Benckiser (RB) is a world leader in household, health and personal care. It is a FTSE top 25 company and since 2000 net revenues have doubled and the market cap has quadrupled. Today it is the global No 1 or No 2 in the majority of its fast-growing categories, driven by an exceptional rate of innovation – typically about 35% of net revenue comes from innovations launched in the prior 3 years. It has a strong portfolio led by 19 global powerbrands which are: Finish, Lysol, Dettol, Vanish, Woolite, Durex, Calgon, Airwick, Harpic, Bang, Mortein, Veet, Nurofen, Clearasil, Strepsils Gaviscon, Mucinex, Scholl and French’s, and they account for 70% of net revenue.

RB people are at the heart of the company’s success. They have an intense drive for progress and action and a desire to outperform wherever they focus, including in CSR where the company has the most ambitious corporate responsibility programme in the industry through its Carbon 20 initiative. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, the company employs about 25,000 people worldwide, with operations in over 60 countries and sales in almost 200 countries.


For further information, please contact:

Reckitt Benckiser
Joanna Speed, Investor Relations: +44 (0)1753 217800

Brunswick (Financial PR)
David Litterick, Media Relations: +44 (0)20 7404 5959 (office)/ +447974 982 455 (mob)
Teresa Bianchi, Media Relations: +44 (0)20 7404 5959 (office)/ +447834 502 477