Holding in Company

Elementis PLC
7 December 2000


                  DEALINGS BY SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS


1)   NAME OF COMPANY

ELEMENTIS PLC


2)   NAME OF SHAREHOLDER HAVING A MAJOR INTEREST

SILCHESTER INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS LIMITED
 

3)   Please state whether notification indicates that it is in respect of 
     holding of the Shareholder named in 2 above or in respect of a 
     non-beneficial interest or in the case of an individual holder if it is a
     holding of that person's spouse or children under the age of 18



4)   Name of the registered holder(s) and, if more than one holder, the 
     number of shares held by each of them.

PLEASE SEE BELOW


5)   Number of shares/amount of stock acquired.

PLEASE SEE BELOW


6)   ( N/A %) of issued Class


7)   Number of shares/amount of stock disposed


8)   ( N/A %) of issued Class


9)   Class of security

ORDINARY SHARES OF 5p


10)  Date of transaction

04 DEC 2000


11)  Date company informed

06 DEC 2000


12)  Total holding following this notification

53,607,761
               
              
13)  Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification

12.43%


14)  Any additional information



15)  Name of contact and telephone number for queries

KERIN WILLIAMS 
020 7398 1439


16)  Name and signature of authorised company official responsible for 
     making this notification

     Date of Notification ... 07 DECEMBER 2000 ...



LETTER TO: ELEMENTIS

We act as an Investment Manager for a number of large institutional investors
and for a number of commingled funds.  In acting for our Clients, we are given 
full discretion over the investments, and are empowered to vote on their behalf.
However, we do not act as their Custodian, and therefore shares are not held in
our name, but in the nominee name of their Custodian Bank.

Recent purchases of shares in your company by ourselves, on behalf of our
clients, have resulted in our having control over the following shares (also 
see below).
 
SILCHESTER:              53,607,761         Ordinary Shares

Our records show that you have the following shares in that class

ELEMENTIS:              431,400,000         Ordinary Shares


As such, we exercise control over 12.43% of the shares of that class.

LETTER FROM: SILCHESTER INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS LIMITED



Company:         Elementis

Share Class:     ORD

Issued Shares:   431,400,000

SII Ownership:   53,607,764

% of Class:      12.43

Date:            4th December 2000




SII Account      Nominee                 %    Share Holding   Voting Authority

GROUP            Northern Trust Co    3.22       13,890,605         YES

GTINV            Northern Trust Co    0.16          702,000         YES

LICRF            Bankers Trust        0.26        1,110,000         YES

MOSER            Bankers Trust        0.75        3,215,000         YES

PATCH            Northern Trust Co    0.37        1,582,500         YES

SBC              Mellon Trust         0.34        1,455,000         YES

SIEBT            Northern Trust Co    6.29       27,155,744         YES

SOLAR            Daiwa Europe Bank    0.17          747,000         YES

TEXAS            Northern Trust Co    0.37        1,608,000         YES

TRUST            Northern Trust Co    0.21          920,895         YES

VITAL            Northern Trust Co    0.28        1,221,020         YES


TOTAL                                            53,607,764