Independent Auditor’s Report

To BASF SE, Ludwigshafen am Rhein/Germany

Report on the audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Combined Management Report.

Audit Opinions

We have audited the consolidated financial statements of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen am Rhein/Germany, and its subsidiaries (the Group) which comprise the consolidated balance sheet as at December 31, 2024, the consolidated statement of profit and loss, income and expenses recognized in equity, the consolidated statement of cash flows, changes in equity for the financial year from January 1 to December 31, 2024 and the notes to the consolidated financial statements, including material accounting policy information. We have not audited the content of the remuneration report, which is referred to in the notes in chapter “(29) Compensation of the Board of Executive Directors and Supervisory Board” and the cross-references in the notes, including references to websites and information to which these references refer to. In addition, we have not audited the content of the remuneration report pursuant to Section 162 German Stock Corporation Act (AktG), which is referenced in the combined management report, nor the disclosures within the combined management report marked as unaudited and cross-references, including references to websites and information to which these references refer to.

In our opinion, on the basis of the knowledge obtained in the audit,

• the accompanying consolidated financial statements comply, in all material respects, with the IFRS^® Accounting Standards issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) (hereafter “IFRS Accounting Standards”) as adopted by the EU and the additional requirements of German commercial law pursuant to Section 315e (1) HGB and, in compliance with these requirements, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities and financial position of the Group as at December 31, 2024 and of its financial performance for the financial year from January 1 to December 31, 2024; our audit opinion on the consolidated financial statements does not cover the content of the remuneration report and the cross-references mentioned above including the related information; and
• the accompanying combined management report as a whole provides an appropriate view of the Group’s position. In all material respects, this combined management report is consistent with the consolidated financial statements, complies with German legal requirements and appropriately presents the opportunities and risks of future development. Our audit opinion on the combined management report neither covers the content of the statements mentioned above, the remuneration report, nor the disclosures extraneous to combined management report marked as unaudited and the cross-references mentioned above including the related information.

Pursuant to Section 322 (3) sentence 1 HGB, we declare that our audit has not led to any reservations relating to the legal compliance of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report.

Basis for the Audit Opinions

We conducted our audit of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report in accordance with Section 317 HGB and the EU Audit Regulation (No. 537/2014; referred to subsequently as “EU Audit Regulation”) and in compliance with German Generally Accepted Standards for Financial Statement Audits promulgated by the Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer (IDW). Our responsibilities under those requirements and principles are further described in the “Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements and of the Combined Management Report” section of our auditor’s report. We are independent of the Group entities in accordance with the requirements of European law and German commercial and professional law, and we have fulfilled our other German professional responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. In addition, in accordance with Article 10 (2) point (f) of the EU Audit Regulation, we declare that we have not provided non-audit services prohibited under Article 5 (1) of the EU Audit Regulation. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinions on the consolidated financial statements and on the combined management report.

Key Audit Matters in the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements

Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgment, were of most significance in our audit of the consolidated financial statements for the financial year from January 1 to December 31, 2024. These matters were addressed in the context of our audit of the consolidated financial statements as a whole and in forming our audit opinion thereon; we do not provide a separate audit opinion on these matters.

In the following, we present the key audit matters we have determined in the course of our audit:

1. Recoverability of goodwill
2. Recoverability of certain property, plant and equipment items.

Our presentation of these key audit matters has been structured as follows:

1. description (including reference to corresponding disclosures in the consolidated financial statements)
2. auditor’s response

1. Recoverability of goodwill

1. As at December 31, 2024, goodwill of mEUR 7,721 (9.6% of total assets) is recognized under the balance sheet item “intangible asset” in the consolidated financial statements of BASF SE. The executive directors of BASF SE perform annual impairment tests for goodwill according to IAS 36, at the level of the cash-generating units or a group of cash-generating units. If an indication exists that a cash-generating unit or a group of cash-generating units may be impaired, an impairment test is performed outside the regular cycle.

   Goodwill is tested for impairment by comparing the carrying amounts of the cash generating units with the respective recoverable amounts. Such determination is based on present value-oriented methods as usually there are no externally available market values for the individual cash-generating units or the groups of cash-generating units. The recoverable amounts were calculated using discounted cash flow models. The present value of the future cash flows is based on the most recent budgets/forecasts approved by management, which are extrapolated using long-term growth rates. The discounting of cash flows is based on the weighted average cost of capital of the respective cash-generating unit. With respect to fiscal year 2024 no impairment for goodwill was identified.

   The executive directors mainly exercise judgement within the determination of the parameters used to forecast future cash flows in the detailed planning period, the assumptions for the long-term growth rates and for the determination of the cost of capital. These assumptions have a significant impact on the determination of the recoverable amounts.

   The impairment tests to be carried out on goodwill are complex and require a considerable level of judgment of the executive directors. Therefore, the impairment test of goodwill was of particular importance in the context of our audit. This was particularly the case for the cash-generating unit Battery Materials, as changes in valuation parameters, which were considered possible based on current market developments, could lead to a need for impairment within these cash-generating units.

   The executive directors’ disclosures on goodwill are included in the sections “(1.4) Accounting policies” and “(14.1) Explanation of intangible assets” of the notes.

2. During our audit, we evaluated the executive directors’ approach in carrying out the impairment tests. In a first step, we obtained an understanding of the process implemented by the executive directors to carry out impairment tests. In addition, we evaluated the design of the controls identified as relevant to our audit and determined whether they had been implemented. We assessed the discounted cashflow models used by management with regards to methodical appropriateness and mathematical accuracy. We examined whether the cash flows used in the valuations are consistent with, or have been logically derived from, the budgets/forecasts approved by management. We evaluated the reasonableness of the relevant assumptions underlying the budgets/forecasts made by the executive directors on the basis of macroeconomic and industry-specific market data, as well as explanations provided by the executive directors. We also assessed the appropriateness of the methodology used for the derivation of the weighted average cost of capital and the appropriateness of the amount of the weighted average cost of capital. To address the risk inherent to the uncertainty of the forecast, we examined the impact on the recoverable amounts of possible variations in relevant valuation parameters by evaluating the calculation of alternative scenarios (sensitivity analysis). In auditing the impairment tests of goodwill, we used the work of our internal valuation specialists and, with their support, assessed whether the methods applied, assumptions made, and data used by the executive directors were reasonable.

2. Recoverability of certain assets within property, plant and equipment

1. The operating business of the BASF Group is asset-intensive, therefore property, plant and equipment is of great relevance to the consolidated financial statements. As at December 31, 2024, property, plant and equipment amounting to mEUR 27,197 (33.8% of total assets). Impairments in the amount of mEUR 694 were recognized on property, plant and equipment, which related in particular to the Battery Materials business in the Surface Technologies segment.

   Items of property, plant and equipment are generally carried at their cost less any accumulated depreciation and any accumulated impairment losses. An impairment of property, plant and equipment is required if the recoverable amount is below the carrying amount. If there are indications for an impairment, the recoverable amount of property, plant and equipment is determined on the basis of the value in use. Such determination is based on present value-oriented methods due to the fact that market values are usually not available for the individual items of property, plant and equipment.

   The impairment tests are complex and their outcome is highly dependent on the executive directors’ judgement. The assumptions to be made by the executive directors are, among other things, made individually for each plant in terms of production volumes as well as prices and expected demand. As a result, the audit of the recoverability of certain assets within property, plant and equipment, in particular with respect to assets within Battery Materials in Germany, was of particular importance in the context of our audit.

   The executive directors’ disclosures on property, plant and equipment are included in sections “(1.4) Accounting policies” and “(14.2) Explanation of property, plant and equipment” to the notes.

2. As part of our audit, we obtained a process understanding of the identification of indicators for an impairment and the valuation of property, plant and equipment by the executive directors. For internal controls relevant to the audit, we evaluated the design of the controls and determined whether they had been implemented. As part of the audit of the impairment tests, we tested – in particular for the identified property, plant and equipment of Battery Materials– the discounted cashflow models used by management with regards to methodical appropriateness and mathematical accuracy. We evaluated the reasonableness of the relevant assumptions underlying the budgets/forecasts made by the executive directors on the basis of macroeconomic and industry-specific market data, as well as explanations provided by the executive directors. We also assessed the appropriateness of the methodology used for the derivation of the weighted average cost of capital and the appropriateness of the amount of the weighted average cost of capital. In auditing the impairment tests of certain assets within property plan and equipment, we used the work of our internal valuation specialists and, with their support, assessed whether the methods applied, assumptions made, and data used by the executive directors were reasonable.

Other information

The executive directors and/or the supervisory board are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises

• the report of the supervisory board,
• the sustainability statement, which contains the information on the non-financial reporting according to Sections 289b to 289e and 315b and 315c HGB,
• the remuneration report, which is referenced in the combined management report as well as in the consolidated financial statements,
• the corporate governance statement,
• disclosures extraneous to the combined management report marked as unaudited and the cross-references including the related information,
• the cross-references included in the notes including the related information,
• the executive directors’ confirmations regarding the consolidated financial statements and the combined management report pursuant to Section 297 (2) sentence 4 and Section 315 (1) sentence 5 HGB and
• all other parts of the annual report,
• but not the consolidated financial statements, not the audited content of the combined management report and not our auditor’s report thereon.

The supervisory board is responsible for the report of the supervisory board. The executive directors and the supervisory board are responsible for the statement according to Section 161 AktG concerning the German Corporate Governance Code, which is part of the corporate governance statement, and for the remuneration report. Otherwise, the executive directors are responsible for the other information.

Our audit opinions on the consolidated financial statements and on the combined management report do not cover the other information, and consequently we do not express an audit opinion or any other form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit, our responsibility is to read the other information identified above and, in doing so, to consider whether the other information

• is materially inconsistent with the consolidated financial statements, with the audited content of the combined management report or our knowledge obtained in the audit, or
• otherwise appears to be materially misstated.

Responsibilities of the Executive Directors and the Supervisory Board for the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Combined Management Report

The executive directors are responsible for the preparation of the consolidated financial statements that comply, in all material respects, with IFRS Accounting Standards as adopted by the EU and the additional requirements of German commercial law pursuant to Section 315e (1) HGB, and that the consolidated financial statements, in compliance with these requirements, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and financial performance of the Group. In addition, the executive directors are responsible for such internal control as they have determined necessary to enable the preparation of consolidated financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud (i.e. fraudulent financial reporting and misappropriation of assets) or error.

In preparing the consolidated financial statements, management is responsible for assessing the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern. They also have the responsibility for disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern. In addition, they are responsible for financial reporting based on the going concern basis of accounting unless there is an intention to liquidate the Group or to cease operations, or there is no realistic alternative but to do so.

Furthermore, the executive directors are responsible for the preparation of the combined management report that, as a whole, provides an appropriate view of the Group’s position and is, in all material respects, consistent with the consolidated financial statements, complies with German legal requirements, and appropriately presents the opportunities and risks of future development. In addition, the executive directors are responsible for such arrangements and measures (systems) as they have considered necessary to enable the preparation of a combined management report that is in accordance with the applicable German legal requirements, and to be able to provide sufficient appropriate evidence for the assertions in the combined management report.

The supervisory board is responsible for overseeing the Group’s financial reporting process for the preparation of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report.

Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements and of the Combined Management Report

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and whether the combined management report as a whole provides an appropriate view of the Group’s position and, in all material respects, is consistent with the consolidated financial statements and the knowledge obtained in the audit, complies with the German legal requirements and appropriately presents the opportunities and risks of future development, as well as to issue an auditor’s report that includes our audit opinions on the consolidated financial statements and on the combined management report.

Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with Section 317 HGB and the EU Audit Regulation and in compliance with German Generally Accepted Standards for Financial Statement Audits promulgated by the Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer (IDW) will always detect a material misstatement. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these consolidated financial statements and this combined management report.

We exercise professional judgment and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also

• identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinions, the risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal controls,
• obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit of the consolidated financial statements and of arrangements and measures relevant to the audit of the combined management report in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an audit opinion on the effectiveness of these internal controls of the Group or of the arrangements and measures,
• evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used by the executive directors and the reasonableness of estimates made by the executive directors and related disclosures,
• conclude on the appropriateness of the executive directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in the auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the consolidated financial statements and in the combined management report or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our respective audit opinions. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Group to cease to be able to continue as a going concern.
• evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the consolidated financial statements, including the disclosures, and whether the consolidated financial statements present the underlying transactions and events in a manner that the consolidated financial statements give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and financial performance of the Group in compliance with IFRS Accounting Standards as adopted by the EU and with the additional requirements of German commercial law pursuant to Section 315e (1) HGB.
• plan and perform the audit of the consolidated financial statements in order to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the financial information of the entities or business units within the Group, which serves as a basis for forming audit opinions on the consolidated financial statements and on the combined management report. We are responsible for the direction, supervision and inspection of the audit procedures performed for the purposes of the group audit. We remain solely responsible for our audit opinions.
• evaluate the consistency of the combined management report with the consolidated financial statements, its conformity with German law, and the view of the Group’s position it provides.
• perform audit procedures on the prospective information presented by the executive directors in the combined management report. On the basis of sufficient appropriate audit evidence we evaluate, in particular, the significant assumptions used by the executive directors as a basis for the prospective information, and evaluate the proper derivation of the prospective information from these assumptions. We do not express a separate audit opinion on the prospective information and on the assumptions used as a basis. There is a substantial unavoidable risk that future events will differ materially from the prospective information.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

We provide those charged with governance with a statement that we have complied with the relevant independence requirements, and communicate with them all relationships and other matters that may reasonably be thought to bear on our independence, and where applicable, the actions taken or safeguards applied to eliminate independence threats.

From the matters communicated with those charged with governance, we determine those matters that were of most significance in the audit of the consolidated financial statements for the current period and are therefore the key audit matters. We describe these matters in the auditor’s report unless law or regulation precludes public disclosure about the matter.

Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements

Report on the Audit of the Electronic Reproductions of the Consolidated Financial Statements and of the Combined Management Report prepared for Publication pursuant to Section 317 (3a) HGB

Audit Opinion

We have performed an audit in accordance with Section 317 (3a) HGB to obtain reasonable assurance whether the electronic reproductions of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report (hereinafter referred to as “ESEF documents”) prepared for publication, contained in the file, which has the SHA-256 value 61cce93ae3c50f91242d772fcedb24db7b4a8010a11a8da328a3e738a4205ead, meet, in all material respects, the requirements for the electronic reporting format pursuant to Section 328 (1) HGB (“ESEF format”). In accordance with the German legal requirements, this audit only covers the conversion of the information contained in the consolidated financial statements and the combined management report into the ESEF format, and therefore covers neither the information contained in these electronic reproductions nor any other information contained in the file identified above.

In our opinion, the electronic reproductions of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report prepared for publication contained in the file identified above meet, in all material respects, the requirements for the electronic reporting format pursuant to Section 328 (1) HGB. Beyond this audit opinion and our audit opinions on the accompanying consolidated financial statements and on the accompanying combined management report for the financial year from January 1 to December 31, 2024 contained in the “Report on the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements and of the Combined Management Report” above, we do not express any assurance opinion on the information contained within these electronic reproductions or on any other information contained in the file identified above.

Basis for the Audit Opinion

We conducted our audit of the electronic reproductions of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report contained in the file identified above in accordance with Section 317 (3a) HGB and on the basis of the IDW Auditing Standard: Audit of the Electronic Reproductions of Financial Statements and Management Reports Prepared for Publication Purposes Pursuant to Section 317 (3a) HGB (IDW AuS 410 (06.2022)). Our responsibilities in this context are further described in the “Group Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the ESEF Documents” section. Our audit firm has applied the requirements of the IDW Quality Management Standards.

Responsibilities of the Executive Directors and the Supervisory Board for the ESEF Documents

The executive directors of the Parent are responsible for the preparation of the ESEF documents based on the electronic files of the consolidated financial statements and of the combined management report according to Section 328 (1) sentence 4 no. 1 HGB and for the tagging of the consolidated financial statements according to Section 328 (1) sentence 4 no. 2 HGB.

In addition, the executive directors of the Company are responsible for such internal controls that they have considered necessary to enable the preparation of ESEF documents that are free from material intentional or unintentional non-compliance with the requirements for the electronic reporting format pursuant to Section 328 (1) HGB.

The supervisory board is responsible for overseeing the process for preparing the ESEF documents as part of the financial reporting process.

Group Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the ESEF Documents

Our objective is to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the ESEF documents are free from material intentional or unintentional non-compliance with the requirements of Section 328 (1) HGB. We exercise professional judgment and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also

• identify and assess the risks of material intentional or unintentional non-compliance with the requirements of Section 328 (1) HGB, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinion,
• obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit on the ESEF documents in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an assurance opinion on the effectiveness of these controls,
• evaluate the technical validity of the ESEF documents, i.e., whether the file containing the ESEF documents meets the requirements of the Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/815, in the version in force at the balance sheet date, on the technical specification for this electronic file,
• evaluate whether the ESEF documents enable an XHTML reproduction with content equivalent to the audited consolidated financial statements and to the audited combined management report.
• evaluate whether the tagging of the ESEF documents with Inline XBRL technology (iXBRL) in accordance with the requirements of Articles 4 and 6 of the Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/815, in the version in force at the balance sheet date, enables an appropriate and complete machine-readable XBRL copy of the XHTML reproduction.

Further Information pursuant to Article 10 of the EU Audit Regulation

We were elected as group auditor by the annual shareholders’ meeting on April 25, 2024. We were engaged by the supervisory board on June 13, 2024. We have been the group auditor of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen am Rhein/Germany, since the financial year 2024.

We declare that the audit opinions expressed in this auditor’s report are consistent with the additional report to the audit committee pursuant to Article 11 of the EU Audit Regulation (long-form audit report).

Other Matter – Use of the Auditor’s Report

Our auditor’s report must always be read together with the audited consolidated financial statements and the audited combined management report as well as with the audited ESEF documents. The consolidated financial statements and the combined management report converted into the ESEF format – including the versions to be submitted for inclusion in the Company Register – are merely electronic reproductions of the audited consolidated financial statements and the audited combined management report and do not take their place. In particular, the ESEF report and our audit opinion contained therein are to be used solely together with the audited ESEF documents made available in electronic form.

German Public Auditor Responsible for the Engagement

The German Public Auditor responsible for the engagement is Michael Mehren.

Frankfurt am Main/Germany, March 18, 2025

Deloitte GmbH
Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft