Braskem BAK

Nir Lander. Mr. Nir Lander joined Braskem in 2024 as Vice President of Compliance and Internal Audit, and is currently Vice President responsible for People, Communication and Supply Chain. The executive has over 24 years of professional experience, primarily in Compliance, Internal Audit and Risk Management, holding international specializations and certifications. Nir also led the Compliance and Internal Audit areas at Telemar/Oi and served as Vice President of People and Management at Ocyan, also overseeing Communication, Supply Chain and IT. A graduate in electrical engineering and telecommunications from CEFET/RJ, with a specialization in Information Security from UNI-Rio, the executive holds an MBA in Business Management from IBMEC and leadership certifications from Wharton Business School and Columbia Business School, both in the United States.

Mr. Hector Nunez was elected as an effective member of the Company's Board of Directors on November 18, 2021, appointed by the shareholder Novonor, and he was reelected on April 19, 2022, and on April 29, 2024. By appointment of the same shareholder, he was elected Chairman of the Company's Board of Directors on February 3, 2025. Mr. Hector Nunez is a high-level, customer-focused executive, international business strategist with more than 25 years of success managing growth, reengineering distressed operations, and initiating startups throughout the United States and South America. He served as CEO of Ri Happy Brinquedos S.A. for 9 years, leading transactions for the acquisition of the largest specialized retailers in Brazil. He also served as CEO of Walmart Brazil, a subsidiary of Walmart Stores, Inc., and held several leadership positions at The Coca-Cola Company and its affiliates. From April 2021 to March 2022, he was Chairman of the Board of Directors of Novonor, having assumed, in March 2022, the position of Chief Executive Officer. He served, from January 2011 to December 2021, as an Independent Director of Vulcabras, and from April 2017 to May 2022, as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Marisa S.A. He also serves on the board of Amigos do Bem, a non-governmental organization. Mr. Hector Nunez holds a bachelor's degree and an MBA in Business Administration from Florida International University.

Carlos Plachta (independent member). Mr. Carlos Plachta was elected to the position of independent member of the Company's Board of Directors on April 29, 2024, being appointed by shareholder Petrobras. He has been a partner, Chief Executive Officer, and Director of Industrias Quimicas Taubate S.A since 2006. He was a partner at Hidroclean Ltda. from January 1999 to July 2003. He has experience in preparing and reviewing Engineering documents; monitoring and optimizing production in the field; scale-up from laboratory scale to pilot scale to industrial scale; management of the project to expand Prosint's Methanol Unit in RJ; management of the expansion project of the Methanol Unit of Metanor, in BA; management of the expansion project of the Coppenor Methanol Unit, in BA; management of the project to expand the capacity of the primary tower of the Manguinhos Oil Refinery, in RJ. In addition, he has experience in the commercial, Financial, Cost and Turnarround areas. He holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro.

Olavo Bentes David. Mr. Olavo Bentes David was elected as an effective member and Vice-Chairman of the Company's Board of Directors on November 28, 2024, appointed by shareholder Petrobras. He began his professional career as a geologist in 1986, at Petrobras, where he served for over twenty years as Petroleum Prospecting Geophysicist in the areas of seismic data acquisition, seismic processing and new business development. In 2006, he became a member of the Advocacia Geral da Uniao (AGU) as Federal Prosecutor (admitted through public examination). He was head of Litigation Coordination at the Federal Attorney's Office of Criciuma/SC section and regional Deputy Prosecutor of INSS (National Social Security Institute) in the 2nd Region (Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo). Mr. Olavo Bentes was Deputy General Attorney of the National Petroleum Agency (Agencia Nacional do Petroleo - ANP), until the beginning of 2014, when he became Legal Consultant of the newly constituted Pre-Sal Petroleo S.A. (PPSA). At PPSA, where he stayed for over eight years, he focused on drafting and negotiating Brazilian production sharing agreements, individualization of production agreements and the federal government's contracts of petroleum and natural gas commercialization. In April 2022, he returned to the Federal Prosecutor's Office at AGU, where he worked in the petroleum and natural gas litigation area, retiring from the public service in September 2022. In the same month, Mr. Olavo Bentes David joined the law firm Tauil and Chequer associated with Mayer Brown as Legal Counsel in the Oil & Natural Gas area (Corporate and Mergers & Acquisition) where he remained until June 2024, when he assumed the position of Presidency Advisor at Petrobras, a position he currently holds. He is algo a member of Braskem's Financial and Investments Committee. Mr. Olavo Bentes David holds a degree in Geology from the Universidade de Brasilia (UnB) and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN). He also holds a specialization in Geophysics for Petroleum Prospecting, from the Petrobras Corporate University, and specialization in Petroleum and Natural Gas Law from PRH-6 (agreement between ANP and Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte - UFRN).

Lucas Cive Barbosa. Mr. Lucas Cive Barbosa has been nominated for the position of alternate member of Braskem's Board of Directors, appointed by the shareholder Novonor. He has served as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Information Officer at Novonor S.A. since July 2024. Previously, he held the same position at OEC S.A. from 2022 to 2025. Mr. Lucas Barbosa has over 20 years of experience in the financial sector. He served as Executive Director at Alvarez & Marsal (2020-2022), Director at BBC Digital - JSL (2019-2020), Chief Financial Officer at Simpar S.A. - JSL (2018-2019), and Director of Corporate Finance at Odebrecht Engenharia e Construcao S.A. (2015-2018). Throughout his career, he has led financial teams in highly complex projects, including debt restructuring, M&A, strategic planning, investor relations, among others. Mr. Lucas Cive Barbosa holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the School of Economics and Business Administration at the University of Sao Paulo (2006) and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management (2015).

Felipe Montoro Jens. Mr. Felipe Montoro Jens was elected as the Company's Chief Financial Officer and Investor Relations Officer on December 13, 2024. Among his 30 years of professional experience, Mr. Felipe Montoro Jens has worked as a Board member, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Investment Officer (CIO), and Managing Director in different companies, withing Novonor Group and other Economic Groups, in infrastructure (highways, ports, and airports, energy generation, transmission, and distribution,water and sewage, and properties, through Concessions and PPPs - Public-Private Partnerships/Parcerias Publico-Privadas); and industrial (chemical, petrochemical, oil and gas, sugar and ethanol), in Brazil and abroad (UK, US, Portugal, and Singapore). Since 2019, Mr. Jens was responsible for the corporate restructuring and sales (M&A) of Novonor Group. In C-Level positions in different companies and countries, Mr. Jens has structured and implemented global finance operations, raising financial resources, both in green-field (Project Finance, Lease Finance) and in corporate operations (M&As, Bonds, Debentures, Cash & Liability Management). In addition to financial achievements, Mr. Felipe Jens has worked in Governance and Organizational Restructuring (turnaround and judicial recoveries), including monitoring and compliance activities. Mr. Felipe Jens holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Fundacao Getulio Vargas - FGV/EAESP, with a Master's Degree in International Business Administration (MIM) from Thunderbird, The American Garvin School of International Management, US.

Geraldo Vilaca Netto. Mr. Geraldo Vilaca Netto was appointed as a member of the Company's Executive Management on December 13, 2024, and he is currently the Executive Officer and Head of Legal, Corporate Governance and Intellectual Property. He has more than 20 years of professional experience, working in law firms and legal departments, where he held leadership and directorship positions. He served as a Board of Directors member of companies operating in sanitation, technology, and sugar and ethanol. Mr. Geraldo Vilaca advised companies in many sectors, notably in the infrastructure sector, with emphasis on project structuring, contractual, litigation, regulatory, and M&A areas. Throughout his career, he accumulated experience in strategic corporate litigation management, complex negotiations, and crisis management, proposing and executing legal and business strategies with many counterparties, both public and private. He holds a Law degree from the Universidade Federal da Bahia and a Master's degree in Civil Law from PUC-SP.

Stefan Lanna Lepecki. Mr. Stefan Lanna Lepecki was appointed as a member of the Company's Executive Management on December 13, 2024, and he currently serves as Vice President (VP) of the South America Business. He serves as Chairman of Braskem Idesa's Board of Directors and as a Board member of Borealis do Brasil. He was Braskem Idesa's CEO from 2017 to 2024, and he has more than 30 years of experience in the petrochemical sector. He served as Project Etileno XXI Director, in Mexico, from 2010 to 2016, having worked at Braskem S.A. between 1991 and 2010, in the areas of Information Technology, Finance, Industrial, Engineering among others. He serves as a Board member of Brazilian Downstream Association of the Brazilian Institute of Petroleum (IBP) and Director of APLA - Associacao Petroquimica Latino-Americana, since 2019. Mr. Stefan Lepecki served as Vice-President and Executive Committee Member of ANIQ - Associacao Nacional da Industria Quimica, in Mexico, from 2017 to 2024, and he was a member of the National Board of CCE - Conselho Coordenador Empresarial - Mexico from 2020 to 2022. Mr. Stefan Lanna Lepecki holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, with MBA in Business Management from Fundacao Getulio Vargas - FGV.

Mauricio Dantas Bezerra. Mr. Mauricio Dantas Bezerra was elected as an effective member of the Company's Board of Directors on November 28, 2024, appointed by shareholder Novonor. Mr. Mauricio Bezerra has executive experience as a team leader in the legal and corporate governance areas, acting in strategic positions for the past 16 years, in Brazil and abroad. His experience with coordinating law and consulting offices, with a central role in the definition and conduction of negotiation and litigation strategies, as well as leading, M&A operations, infrastructure projects development and negotiations of leniency agreements with various authorities, in Brazil and abroad. Mr. Mauricio Dantas Bezerra has experience in capital markets, finance operations, tax planning and strategic litigation, acting in the formation of jurisprudence in leading cases in higher courts, as well as executive and business-oriented performance, integrating the decision making and strategic planning center. Mr. Mauricio Dantas Bezerra has been, since 2022, Vice-President of Legal and Corporate Governance at Novonor, in the same position that he held from 2018 to 2020. He was Funding Partner of VMB Juridica, where he worked in the conduction of complex projects from 2020 to 2022. From 2016 to 2018, he was Legal Director of Construtora Norberto Odebrecht and from 2013 to 2016 he was Legal and Corporate Governance Director of Odebrecht Ambiental S.A. In Braskem S.A., he was Legal Director from 2008 to 2012, being responsible for corporate, capital markets, M&A, projects, finances, tax, commercial, labor, intellectual property, environmental, competitive (CADE), arbitration and litigation areas. He holds a law degree from Unifacs - Universidade Salvador, LLM by University of Warwick, UK (Chevening Scholar and Distinction Award) and Global Leaders Program by Wharton University of Pennsylvania - Philadelphia.

Juliana Sa Vieira Baiardi. Ms. Juliana Baiardi was elected as an effective member of the Company's Board of Directors, appointed by the shareholder Novonor on April 19, 2022, and reelected on April 29, 2024. Since November 2024, Ms. Juliana Baiard is Executive Vice-President of Planning and Management of Simpar S.A., and since June 2025, she has been the CEO of JSP Holding S.A. Additionally, she is a Board member of JSL S.A. and Vamos - Locacao de Caminhoes, Maquinas e Equipamentos S.A. (a truck, machinery and equipment rental company), both Simpar-controlled companies listed on the stock exchange, since January 1 2026. Previously, Ms. Juliana Baiardi joined Novonor Group in August 2011, where she remained until November 2023, holding various positions including Novonor's Business-Participation Leader from June 2022 to October 2023; member of the Board of Directors of OTP (Odebrecht Transport) from June 2019 to November 2024; Novonor's CEO Advisor from April 2021 to June 2022; Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of Odebrecht Engenharia e Construcao from October 2019 until June 2022; Chief Executive Officer of Atvos from May 2019 to February 2021; Chief Executive Officer of OTP from May 2017 to May 2019; Chief Executive Officer of Odebrecht Ambiental from September 2016 to April 2017; Chief Financial Officer of Odebrecht Ambiental from February 2016 to September 2016; and Logistics Officer at OTP from August 2011 to February 2016. Prior to joining the Novonor Group, Ms. Juliana Baiardi worked for 10 years at JP Morgan in the areas of Investment Banking in Latin America and Private Equity. She also worked at Dresdner Bank in Brazil in the Project Finance sector from 1997 to 1999. Ms. Juliana Baiardi holds a degree in Civil Engineering from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) and an MBA from Columbia Business School in New York.

Luiz Eduardo Valente Moreira. Mr. Luiz Eduardo Valente Moreira was elected as a full member of the Company's Board of Directors on February 3, 2025, nominated by the shareholder Petrobras. He has been working for 45 years at the Petrobras group, where he has held various managerial positions, such as: Superintendent of the Presidente Getulio Vargas Refinery (REPAR) from September 1999 to July 2000; General Manager of Refining Technology in Supply (AB-RE/TR) from December 2001 to April 2005; General Manager of the Henrique Lage Refinery (REVAP) from May 2005 to September 2008; General Manager of the Bahia Nitrogen Fertilizer Plant (FAFEN-BA) from September 2008 to September 2009; Executive Manager of Gas and Energy Gas-Chemical and Liquefaction (GE-GQL) from September 2009 to August 2013; Director of the Comperj Petrochemical project at Braskem from September 2013 to May 2015; Executive Manager of Safety, Environment, and Health (SMS) from June 2015 to March 2018; Executive Manager of Industrial (Refining) from April 2018 to April 2019; Vice President of Projects and Digital Technologies at Braskem Petrochemical from April 2019 to June 2020; Director of Services at Petrobras Transporte - Transpetro from July, 2020 to September 2021; President of Transpetro from September 2021 to April 2023; and Managing Director of Fabrica Carioca de Catalisadores since May 2023 to date. Mr. Luiz Eduardo Valente Moreira graduated in Chemical Engineering from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) in 1980, having started his career at Petrobras in the same year. He holds a Postgraduate degree in Petroleum Processing Engineering from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and an Executive MBA from COPPEAD (UFRJ).

Gesner Jose de Oliveira Filho (independent member). Mr. Gesner Jose de Oliveira Filho was elected as an independent and effective member of the Company's Board of Directors on June 27, 2017. appointed by the shareholder Novonor, and he was reelected on April 30, 2018, on May 29, 2020, on April 19, 2022, and on April 29, 2024. He is certified by the IBGC as an Independent board member and member of the CCoAud+ Audit Committee; member of the Board of Directors of TIM, where he coordinates the Statutory Audit Committee and serves a member of the ESG Committee; Chairman of the Board of Directors of Estre Ambiental; and member of the Self-Regulation Board of FEBRABAN. Additionally, he is member of the International Academy of Law and Economy - Academia Internacional de Direito e Economia (AIDE) and serves pro bono as a member of the Advisory Board of the Brazilian Association of Infrastructure and Basic Industries (Abdib), the +Water Movement of the UN Global Compact Brazil, and of the Brazilian Institute of Competitive Ethics (ETCO). He is Director of the Basic Sanitation Division of the Infrastructure Department (DEINFRA) and a member of the Superior Infrastructure Council (COINFRA) at FIESP. Also, he is a partner at GO Associados and Professor at FGV - Fundacao Getulio Vargas, where he coordinates the Center for Studies on Infrastructure & Environmental Solutions. He served as a Chairman of the Board of Directors of KWPar, member of the Worldwide Advisory Board of UBER and of the Boards of Directors of Igua, Usiminas, Sabesp, CESP, Banco Nossa Caixa and Varig. Between 2007 and 2011, he was CEO of Sabesp - Companhia de Saneamento do Estado de Sao Paulo, and from 1996 to 2000, he was Chairman of CADE. Mr. Gesner Oliveira holds a PhD from the University of California (Berkeley), a Master's degree from Unicamp and a Bachelor's degree from FEA-USP, all in Economics.

Roberto Prisco Paraiso Ramos. Mr. Ramos is the current Chief Executive Officer of Braskem elected on November 25, 2024, with his executive mandate beginning on December 1, 2024. Mr. Roberto Ramos joined the Novonor Group in 1995, being a part of many prominent programs in Brazil and abroad. Among his roles, he served as Chairman of the North Sea Production Company and was responsible for the operation of the MacCulloch field for Conoco UK. In 2002, he joined the newly created Braskem as Executive Vice President, overseeing the PET, DMT, and Caprolactam plants. Later, Mr. Roberto Ramos led the Corporate Excellence Program, which included IT (implementing the SAP system), Health, Safety, and the Environment. Subsequently, he took on the leadership of the International Area, where his most notable achievement was the initiation and implementation of the Etileno XXI Project in Mexico, serving as Chairman of the Braskem Idesa's Board of Directors. In 2010, Mr. Roberto Ramos assumed the leadership of Ocyan, where he remained until 2014. After an eight-year period as a board member in various Novonor Group businesses, he returned to the presidency of Ocyan in 2023 to complete Novonor's divestment process in the business. Mr. Roberto Ramos has extensive experience as a counselor, businessman, and executive, notably during his tenure at the Focchi Group in Italy as Corporate Finance Director. He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from UFRJ, a specialization in Business Management from Harvard Business School, and has concluded the syllabus needed to be granted with a master's degree in Finance from the University of Leicester, pending the filing of the dissertation.

Joao Pinheiro Nogueira Batista. Mr. Joao Pinheiro Nogueira Batista was elected as an effective member of the Company's Board of Directors on April 16, 2019, nominated by the shareholder Novonor, and was reelected on May 29, 2020, on April 19, 2022, and on April 29, 2024. He has served on Boards of Brazilian and international companies for over 20 years, as well as in third-sector organizations, where he currently serves as a board member of Instituto de Reciclagem do Adolescente - Reciclar. Mr. Joao Nogueira held the position of CEO of Lojas Marisa from February 2023 to February 2024, as well as Chairman of Vports S/A Board of Directors (formerly Companhia Docas do Espirito Santo S.A.) from 2022 until April, 2024. He served as an independent member of the Board of Directors of Wiz Solucoes e Corretagem de Seguros from April 2020 until April 2022, and he also served as CEO of Evoltz Participacoes S.A. until January 2022. He was an independent member of the Boards of Directors of Odebrecht Engenharia e Construcao starting in June 2017 and Ocyan starting in April 2018, where he remained until January 2019, when he joined the Board of Directors of Novonor and remained until April 2021. Throughout his extensive executive career, in both public and private sectors, he served as CEO of Swiss Re, Bertin S.A. and Suzano Petroquimica, and held executive positions at companies such as Petrobras, Dresdner Bank, Citibank, Radiobras and Siderbras. Mr. Joao Nogueira holds a degree in economics from PUC-RJ and an MBA in Economic Engineering from Universidade Gama Filho, Rio de Janeiro.

Paulo Roberto Britto Guimaraes. Mr. Paulo Roberto Britto Guimaraes was elected as an effective member of the Company's Board of Directors on April 29, 2024, appointed by shareholder Petrobras. He served as Superintendent of Attraction of Investments and Promotion of Economic Development of the Bureau of Industry, Commerce and Mining (SICM) from 2009 to 2014 and has served as Superintendent of Attraction of Investments and Promotion of Economic Development of the Bureau of Economic Development (SDE) of the State of Bahia since 2015, having been temporarily in charge of the Bureau between April and May 2015, April and May 2018 and between March and May 2022, in addition to participating in several international missions of the Government of the State of Bahia, many advising or representing the Governor of the State of Bahia (2010 - 2023). Since April 2024, he holds the position of CEO at Bahiainveste - Empresa Baiana de Ativos. He held the positions of Coordinator of the Chemical Engineering Course, Head of the Department of Engineering and Architecture and Coordinator of the Master's Degree in Energy at Universidade Salvador UNIFACS, where he also served as full professor until 2017, researcher and permanent professor of the Master's Degree in Energy, collaborating professor of the Multi-institutional Doctorate in Chemical Engineering (UFBA/UNIFACS) and professor of the Undergraduate Course in Chemical Engineering, having also held the positions of Technical Coordinator of the Fuel Quality Monitoring Program PMQC of the Brazilian Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels - ANP in the State of Bahia until 2014 and holder of the Teaching, Research and Extension Council (CONSEPE) and the University Council (CONSUNI). He served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Empresa Baiana de Ativos S.A. - Bahiainveste between 2017 and 2024, and as a Member of the Board of Directors of Companhia Baiana de Pesquisa Mineral CBPM, where he also held the position of Chairman between April and July 2023.He was Chairman of the Audit Committee of Empresa Baiana de Pesca Bahia Pesca from 2015 to 2023, and served as a member during several periods on the Board of Trustees of FAPESP - Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado da Bahia and on the Regional Chemistry Council of Bahia CRQ 7th Region. He has experience in the areas of Chemical and Energy Engineering, with emphasis on oil and petrochemicals, renewable energies, green hydrogen, energy transition, catalysis, thermodynamics, modeling and simulation, fuels, petroleum derivatives and regulation of the oil industry, in which he coordinated and participated in several research and engineering projects, with financing from companies (Petrobras, Braskem, Ford, etc.) and development agencies (FAPESP, ANP and MCT/CNPq/FINEP/CTPetro). Mr. Paulo Guimaraes holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the Federal University of Bahia, a master's degree in chemical engineering from the State University of Campinas and a doctorate in Chemical Engineering from the University of Leeds, England.

Jose Mauro Mettrau Carneiro da Cunha (independent member). Mr. Jose Mauro Mettrau Carneiro da Cunha was elected as an effective member of the Company's Board of Directors on December 20, 2019, appointed by shareholder Novonor, and was reelected on May 29, 2020, on April 19, 2022, and on April 29, 2024. On February 3, 2025, Mr. Jose Mauro left the position of Chairman of the Company's Board of Directors but continued to serve as an effective member. He was Chairman of the Board of Directors of Novonor until January 2024.and He was Chief Executive Officer of Novonor, from April 2021 to March 2022. He also served on the Board of Directors of Oi S.A., from September 2018 to September 2020, having previously held the position of Chairman since 2009. Mr. Jose Mauro started his career as an employee of BNDES, exercising several duties and occupying executive positions (from 1974 to 1990), also being appointed Officer (from 1991 to 1998) and Vice-President of BNDES, responsible for the Industrial Operations, Legal and Fiscal Matters areas (from 1998 to 2002). His main professional experiences include: (i) member of the Board of Directors of Telemar Participacoes S.A. (from 2008 until the merger of Telemar Participacoes S.A., in September 2015); (ii) Member of the Board of Directors of Vale S.A. (from 2010 to April 2015); (iii) interim CEO of Oi S.A., in 2013; (iv) Chairman of the Board of Directors of the following companies: Tele Norte Leste Participacoes S.A. (from 1999 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2012), also acting as Alternate Member of the Board of Directors in 2006; Telemar Norte Leste S.A. (from 2007 to 2012); TNL PCS S.A. (from 2007 to 2012); Tele Norte Celular Participacoes S.A. (from 2008 to 2012); Coari Participacoes S.A. (from 2007 to 2012); Dommo Empreendimentos Imobiliarios S.A., previously named Calais Participacoes S.A. (from 2007 to December 2016); (v) member of the Board of Directors of Log-In Logistica Intermodal S.A. (from 2007 to 2011); (vi) Member of the Board of Directors of Lupatech S.A. (from 2006 to 2012); (vii) Member of the Board of Directors of Santo Antonio Energia S.A. (from 2008 to 2016); (viii) member of the Board of Directors of the following Companies: (a) Braskem S.A. (from 2007 to 2010), where he previously held the position of Vice-President of Strategic Planning (from 2003 to 2005); (b) LIGHT Servicos de Eletricidade S.A. (from 1997 to 2000); (c) Aracruz Celulose S.A. (from 1997 to 2002); (d) Politeno Industria e Comercio S.A. (from 2003 to 2004); (e) BANESTES S.A. - Banco do Estado do Espirito Santo (Espirito Santo State Bank) (from 2008 to 2009); and (f) Pharol, SGPS, S.A. (from 2015 to 2017). Mr. Jose Mauro is a mechanic engineering graduate from Universidade Catolica de Petropolis (Petropolis Catholic University), Rio de Janeiro, in 1971. He completed the Executive Program in Management at Anderson School, University of California, in December 2002.