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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No.          )

 

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BALL CORPORATION
10 Longs Peak Drive, Broomfield, Colorado 80021-2510

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NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
TO BE HELD WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011

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        The Annual Meeting of Shareholders of Ball Corporation will be held at the Corporation's offices, 10 Longs Peak Drive, Broomfield, Colorado 80021-2510, on Wednesday, April 27, 2011, at 8:00 A.M. (MDT) for the following purposes:

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To elect four directors for three-year terms expiring at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held in 2014;



2.

To ratify the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Corporation for 2011;



3.

To approve, by non-binding vote, the compensation of the named executive officers as disclosed in the enclosed Proxy Statement;



4.

To recommend, by non-binding vote, the frequency of the shareholder vote to approve the compensation of the named executive officers;



5.

To consider a shareholder proposal, if properly presented, to have the Board of Directors adopt a rule to redeem any current or future rights plan unless such plan or amendments to the plan are submitted to a shareholder vote, as a separate ballot item, within 12 months;



6.

To consider a shareholder proposal, if properly presented, to have the Board of Directors take the necessary steps, excluding those that may be taken only by shareholders, to change Ball's jurisdiction of incorporation to Delaware; and



7.

To consider any other business as may properly come before the meeting, although it is anticipated that no business will be conducted other than the matters listed above.

        Only holders of Common Stock of record at the close of business on March 1, 2011, are entitled to notice of and to vote at the Annual Meeting or any adjournment thereof.

        A Proxy Statement appears on the following pages. Copies of the Annual Report and Form 10-K for 2010 are being mailed to you with this Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Proxy Statement.

March 14, 2011
Broomfield, Colorado

YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT

You are urged to complete, sign, date and promptly return your proxy card in the enclosed
postage-paid envelope, or submit your proxy by telephone or via the Internet,
as soon as possible, so that your shares can be voted at the meeting
in accordance with your instructions.

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PLEASE NOTE: The 2011 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be held to tabulate the votes cast and
to report the results of voting on the items described above. No management presentations
or other business matters are planned for the meeting.

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Ball and are trademarks of Ball Corporation, Reg. U.S. Pat. & Tm. Office

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BALL CORPORATION
10 Longs Peak Drive, Broomfield, Colorado 80021-2510

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PROXY STATEMENT
March 14, 2011

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ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
TO BE HELD WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011

Important notice regarding the availability of proxy materials for the Annual
Meeting of Shareholders to be held on Wednesday, April 27, 2011:

The Proxy Statement, 10-K and Annual Report are available at
http://materials.proxyvote.com/058498

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To Shareholders of Ball Corporation:

        This Proxy Statement and the accompanying proxy card are furnished to shareholders in connection with the solicitation by the Board of Directors of Ball Corporation ("Corporation" or "Ball") of proxies to be voted at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders ("Annual Meeting") to be held April 27, 2011, for the purposes stated in the accompanying notice of the meeting.

        Please complete, sign, date and return your proxy card, or submit your proxy by telephone or via the Internet, as soon as possible, so that your shares can be voted at the meeting. Any Ball Corporation shareholder of record desiring to submit a proxy by telephone or via the Internet will be required to enter the unique voter control number imprinted on the Ball Corporation proxy card, and therefore should have the card for reference when initiating the process.

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To submit your proxy by telephone, call 1-800-652-8683 on a touch-tone telephone and follow the simple menu instructions provided. There is no charge for this call.



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To submit your proxy over the Internet, log on to the Web site http://www.investorvote.com and follow the simple instructions provided.

Similar instructions are included on the enclosed proxy card.

        A shareholder of the Corporation may revoke a proxy in writing at any time prior to the meeting by sending written notice of revocation to the Corporate Secretary; by voting again by telephone, via the Internet or in writing; or by voting in person at the meeting.

VOTING SECURITIES AND PRINCIPAL SHAREHOLDERS

        At the close of business on March 1, 2011, there were outstanding 169,313,274 shares of Common Stock (together with the associated preferred stock purchase rights under the Rights Agreement dated as of July 26, 2006, between the Corporation and Computershare Investor Services, LLC, as amended). Other than 944 shares of Common Stock

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granted as restricted stock without voting rights, each of the shares of Common Stock is entitled to one vote. Shareholders do not have cumulative voting rights with respect to the election of directors.

        Based on Schedule 13G filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), the following table indicates the beneficial owners of more than 5 percent of the Corporation's outstanding Common Stock as of December 31, 2010:

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BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP

        The following table lists the beneficial ownership of Common Stock of the Corporation by director nominees, continuing directors, the Chief Executive Officer and the four other most highly compensated executive officers and, as a group, of such persons and the other executive officers as of the close of business on March 1, 2011.

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VOTING ITEM I—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

        Pursuant to our Amended Articles of Incorporation and the Indiana Business Corporation Law, our Board of Directors ("Board") is divided into three classes, as nearly equal in number as possible, with directors serving staggered three-year terms. Amendments to the Indiana Business Corporation Law in 2009 made this classified Board structure statutorily required for Ball Corporation, effective from and after July 31, 2009. On April 27, 2011, four persons are to be elected to serve as directors until the 2014 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. Unless otherwise instructed on the proxy card, the persons named in the accompanying proxy intend to vote for nominees John A. Hayes, George M. Smart, Theodore M. Solso, and Stuart A. Taylor II to hold office as directors of the Corporation until the 2014 Annual Meeting of Shareholders (Class II), or, in each case, until his respective successor is elected and qualified. All nominees have consented to be named as candidates in the Proxy Statement and have agreed to serve if elected. If, for any reason, any of the nominees becomes unavailable for election, the shares represented by proxies will be voted for any substitute nominee or nominees designated by the Board. The Board has no reason to believe that any of the nominees will be unable to serve.

        In accordance with the Indiana Business Corporation Law, directors are elected by a plurality of the votes cast by the shares entitled to vote in the election at a meeting at which a quorum is present. Abstentions and broker nonvotes are considered neither votes "for" nor "against." Proxies may not be voted for a greater number of persons than the four named nominees.

        Set forth for each director nominee in Class II and for each continuing director in Classes I and III is the director's principal occupation and employment during the past five years or, if longer, the period during which the director has served as a director, and certain other information, including his or her public company directorships during the past five years.

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DIRECTOR NOMINEES AND CONTINUING DIRECTORS

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DIRECTOR AND NOMINEE EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS

        Set out below are the specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills of each of the Corporation's directors and director nominees which led the Board to conclude that each person should serve as a director of the Corporation.

        Robert W. Alspaugh —Mr. Alspaugh enjoyed a distinguished 35-year career with KPMG, with increasing responsibility, which culminated in his acting as Deputy Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of KPMG-U.S. from 1998 to 2002 and Chief Executive Officer of KPMG International from 2002 to October 2005. Mr. Alspaugh's extensive experience, qualifications and skills as a leader of one of the "big four" global accounting firms enhance his service on the Corporation's Audit Committee and he has provided valuable input as a result. He also sits on two other public company boards, one in the U.S. and the other in Europe (where he chairs the audit committee), thus providing good cross-functional background and experience, with an international component. Mr. Alspaugh's extensive professional experience as a leader of a major global accounting firm, advising and supporting large international corporations, make him well qualified to serve as a director.

        Hanno C. Fiedler —After a successful career with TRW, Inc., in 1996 Mr. Fiedler became Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Schmalbach-Lubeca AG, one of the largest and most successful rigid packaging companies based in Europe. When Ball acquired the beverage can business of Schmalbach-Lubeca in December 2002, Mr. Fiedler became Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ball Packaging Europe GmbH and also joined the Board of Ball Corporation. In that capacity, Mr. Fiedler provided excellent leadership to our newly-acquired European business which generated strong earnings performance during his tenure, despite the adverse effects of the German mandatory deposit system for rigid packaging which was initiated in 2003. Mr. Fiedler retired from active management of Ball Packaging Europe at the end of 2005, but has continued as the Chairman of its Supervisory Board to the present. He also serves on the Supervisory Boards of three major German companies. His leadership experience within the rigid container industry worldwide, with specific emphasis on Europe, makes him well qualified to serve as a director.

        John A. Hayes —Prior to joining Ball Corporation in 1999, Mr. Hayes was a Vice President of Lehman Brothers Inc. and part of an investment banking team which focused on merger and acquisition and financing advice to several major companies, including the Corporation. At Ball, Mr. Hayes initially headed our corporate development and planning activities as Senior Director and then Vice President, Corporate Planning and Development, taking on the added responsibilities of marketing and new product development from 2003 to mid-2005. He then served as President of Ball Packaging Europe, which produced excellent financial results and strong revenue growth under his leadership. During 2008 and 2009, Mr. Hayes served as Ball's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, successfully leading our key operating divisions through the current economic and financial crisis. In January 2010 he was named our President and Chief Operating Officer and joined the Ball Corporation Board. In January 2011, he became our President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Hayes' extensive investment banking and leadership experience within Ball make him well qualified to serve as a director.

        R. David Hoover —Mr. Hoover has enjoyed a varied and successful 41-year career with Ball, serving in multiple corporate and divisional roles, including as Vice President and Treasurer from 1987 through 1992, Chief Financial Officer from 1993 to April 2000, and Chief Operating Officer for the balance of 2000. He was our Chief Executive Officer from January 2001 to January 2011, and led the Corporation through an unprecedented period of growth in revenues, earnings per share and free cash flow. Mr. Hoover's considerable working knowledge and leadership experience with respect to our Corporation make him uniquely qualified to serve as a director. He has been a Ball Board member for 15 years, serving as Chairman since 2002, and serves as a director of three other major U.S.-based public companies. Mr. Hoover has also served on the Board of Trustees of DePauw University since 2002 and on the Board of Boulder Community Hospital since 2006.

        John F. Lehman —Mr. Lehman served as Secretary of the Navy in the Reagan Administration from 1981 to 1987, after which he was Managing Director of Paine Webber Inc.'s Investment Banking Division from 1988 to 1990 where he led the firm's aerospace and defense advisory practice. He then established J.F. Lehman & Company, a New York-based investment company, and has served as its chairman since 1990. Mr. Lehman is also Chairman of the Princess Grace Foundation and an Overseer of the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. He has a rare combination of extensive business experience, public service, political acumen and global perspective. Mr. Lehman served as a member of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission, from 2002 to 2004. He has been an astute and valuable member of Ball's Board for 24 years and has chaired its Finance Committee for many years. Mr. Lehman's public service, financial industry experience and Ball Board experience make him well qualified to serve as a director.

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        Georgia R. Nelson —Ms. Nelson has enjoyed a successful 40-year career in the energy industry, serving as a senior executive for several U.S. and international energy companies, including as President of Midwest Generation EME, LLC from April 1999 to June 2005 and General Manager of Edison Mission Energy Americas from January 2002 to June 2005. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the National Coal Council since 2000 and served as its Chairman from 2006 to 2008. She has had extensive international operations, construction, environmental and policy experience on four continents. Ms. Nelson regularly lectures on business and corporate governance matters, including at Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management, and serves on the advisory committee of the Center for Executive Women at Northwestern. Ms. Nelson also serves as a director of two other public companies. Ms. Nelson's leadership roles in the power generation and distribution industries, as well as her service on other company boards, clearly qualify her to serve as a director of our Corporation.

        Jan Nicholson —Ms. Nicholson enjoyed a long and successful career in the financial services industry in New York, which, after an 18-year tenure at Citicorp, included positions as Managing Director, Research and Development for CapMAC from 1994 to 1998 and Managing Director, Strategic Risk Assessment for MBIA Insurance Corporation from 1998 to 2000. She also served as a director of Rubbermaid, Inc. from 1992 until 1999, and chaired its Audit Committee from 1994 through 1998. In addition, Ms. Nicholson is a director of Radian Group Inc. and has been President of The Grable Foundation since 1990. She has been a member of Ball's Board for 17 years and has chaired our Audit Committee since 2004. Ms. Nicholson's career in the financial services industry and her service on the Rubbermaid Audit Committee and board, as well as her long service in those capacities with Ball, make her well qualified to serve as a director.

        George M. Smart —Mr. Smart's long career and success in the U.S. can manufacturing industry make him well qualified to serve as a director. He steadily assumed increasing responsibility at Central States Can Co., a division of Van Dorn Company, culminating in his acting as its President and Chief Executive Officer from 1978 to 1993. When Central States was acquired in 1993, Mr. Smart and his management team established a start-up company, Phoenix Packaging Corporation, to manufacture and sell full-panel easy-open ends for food containers, including to Ball's food can division. Serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for Phoenix, Mr. Smart led its growth to a profitable company with revenues in excess of $80 million, when it was sold to Sonoco Products Company and became Sonoco-Phoenix, Inc. in 2001. Mr. Smart served as President of Sonoco-Phoenix until 2004 and has been Chairman of the Board of FirstEnergy Corp. since 2004. He previously served on the boards of Belden & Blake Corporation, Commercial Intertech Corporation, Unizan Financial, Van Dorn Company, and as Chairman of the Can Manufacturers Institute.

        Theodore M. Solso —Mr. Solso has had a successful 40-year career at Cummins Inc., a Fortune 500 manufacturing company with operations around the world. This culminated with Mr. Solso becoming Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cummins in January 2000, a position in which he serves today. Under his leadership, Cummins has increased revenues from $6.6 billion in 2000 to $10.8 billion in 2009. During the same period, its earnings per share and operating cash flow have increased from $0.35 and $550 million, to $2.49 and $1.1 billion, respectively. Mr. Solso has been on our Board since 2003 and serves as a director of Ashland Inc. He is also a member of The Indiana Academy and a member of the Business Roundtable. Mr. Solso also co-chairs the U.S.-Brazil CEO Forum and is a trustee of Earth University in Costa Rica. Mr. Solso's long experience in leadership positions with a major global manufacturing company make him well qualified to serve as a director.

        Stuart A. Taylor II —Mr. Taylor spent the first 15 years of his working career at Bear Stearns & Co. Inc., culminating with the position of Senior Managing Director in Chicago. While at Bear Stearns, Mr. Taylor acted for many companies on merger and acquisition and financing transactions, including for Ball on its 1993 acquisition of Heekin Can Company. In 2001, Mr. Taylor established The Taylor Group L.L.C., of which he is Chief Executive Officer, a successful investment company that primarily invests in minority-owned businesses. Mr. Taylor has been a director of Ball since 1999, acted as our Presiding Director from 2004 to 2008 and chairs our Human Resources Committee. He is also a director of Hillenbrand, Inc., an Indiana based public company. Mr. Taylor's extensive experience as an investment banker, entrepreneurial investor and Ball Board member make him well qualified to serve as a director.

        Erik H. van der Kaay —Mr. van der Kaay, a native of the Netherlands, had a long and successful career in the U.S. telecom industry, including service as a senior executive with Allen Telecom throughout the 1990s, culminating as Executive Vice President, and as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Datum, Inc. from 1998 to 2002 and as Chairman of Symmetricom, Inc. from 2002 to 2003. He has also served as the managing director of a Brazilian telecom company, as well as on the board of directors of several public companies and is currently a board member of RF Micro Devices in the U.S. and Orolia, S.A. in Europe, providing good cross-functional background and experience, with an international component. In addition, he has served since 2007 as a member of the South East Audit Committee

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Leadership Network convened by Ernst & Young and comprised of audit committee members of leading public companies. Mr. van der Kaay's experience as a leader and as a director of several other companies as well as his business and financial acumen, and his international perspective, make him well qualified to serve as a director.

BOARD LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE AND RISK OVERSIGHT

        On January 26, 2011, John A. Hayes became our President and Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") and R. David Hoover, our predecessor CEO, continues to serve as Chairman of the Board. The decision to split the position of Chairman and CEO is part of an orderly succession plan by which Mr. Hayes has transitioned into his current role. Mr. Hayes has risen to the position of CEO after more than 11 years with Ball, most recently serving as President and Chief Operating Officer and a member of the Board. Mr. Hayes has also previously served as President of Ball Packaging Europe from 2006 to early 2008, and then as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Corporation. Splitting the role of Chairman and CEO at this time will allow Mr. Hayes the opportunity to focus on his new executive responsibilities in managing the Corporation; while having Mr. Hoover as Chairman will provide continuity. Mr. Hayes and Mr. Hoover have worked closely together for more than 11 years, and the Board believes that their continued collaboration in their new respective roles will result in a smooth change in senior management that will be beneficial to shareholders.

        Our Board of Directors is composed of Mr. Hoover, Mr. Hayes and nine other directors, eight of whom are independent directors. The Board has four standing committees—Audit, Nominating/Corporate Governance, Human Resources and Finance. Each of the committees, except for Finance, is composed solely of independent directors (the Finance Committee is primarily composed of independent directors), with each of the four committees having an independent director serving as chairman.

        Pursuant to SEC and NYSE rules, regularly scheduled executive sessions of nonmanagement directors are held. Executive sessions of independent directors are also held at least annually. Such meetings promote open discussion by nonmanagement and independent directors, enabling them to serve as a check on management, if necessary. The meetings of the nonmanagement and independent directors are chaired by the Presiding Director, who is an independent director appointed by the Board.

        In accordance with NYSE requirements, our Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the risk management function of the Corporation. While the Audit Committee has primary responsibility for overseeing risk management, the entire Board is involved in overseeing risk management for the Corporation. Additionally, each Board committee considers the specific risks within its area of responsibility. Our Internal Audit Department has, for many years, analyzed various areas of risk to the Corporation and has provided risk assessment and analysis to our Audit Committee. In 2007, the Corporation established a comprehensive Enterprise Risk Management process which is now supervised by our Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, whereby key corporate and divisional risks are systematically identified and assessed on a quarterly basis. The results of this ongoing risk assessment are reported to our Audit Committee and to our Board at least annually.

        One of the responsibilities of our Board of Directors is to evaluate the effectiveness of the Board and make recommendations involving its organization and operation. We recognize that different board leadership structures may be appropriate for different companies. We believe our current leadership structure, with Mr. Hayes serving as Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Hoover as Chairman of the Board, a Board with a majority of independent directors, an independent chairman for each of our standing Board committees and separate meetings of nonmanagement and independent directors, provides the most effective form of leadership for our Corporation at this time. We believe that our directors provide effective oversight of risk management through the Board's regular dialogue with Ball management, the Enterprise Risk Management process, and assessment of specific risks within each Board committee's areas of responsibility.

BOARD DIVERSITY

        Ball's Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee consistently applies the principles of diversity in its consideration of candidates for Board positions. In addition to considering characteristics such as race, gender and national origin, the Committee considers a variety of other characteristics, such as business and professional experience, education and skill, all leading to differences of viewpoint and other individual qualities that contribute to Board

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heterogeneity. This has resulted in a diverse group of talented and capable Board members, as described in more detail under "Director and Nominee Experience and Qualifications" on pages 8 and 9.

GOVERNANCE OF THE CORPORATION

Corporate Governance Guidelines

        The Board has established Corporate Governance Guidelines to comply with the relevant provisions of Section 303A of the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") Listed Company Manual ("NYSE Listing Standards"). The Corporate Governance Guidelines are set forth on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance." A copy may also be obtained upon request from the Corporation's Corporate Secretary.

Policies on Business Ethics and Conduct

        Ball established a Corporate Compliance Committee in 1993 chaired by a designated Compliance Officer. The Committee publishes a code of business ethics, which is in the form of the Business Ethics booklet. The Board has adopted a separate additional business ethics statement referred to as the Ball Corporation Executive Officers and Directors Business Ethics Statement ("Executive Officers and Directors Ethics Statement") designed to establish principles requiring the highest level of ethical behavior toward achieving business success within the requirements of the law and the Corporation's policies and ethical standards. The Business Ethics booklet and the Executive Officers and Directors Ethics Statement are set forth on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance." Copies may also be obtained upon request from the Corporation's Corporate Secretary.

Director Training

        All new directors receive orientation training soon after being elected to the Board. Continuing education programs are made available to directors including internal presentations, third-party presentations and externally offered programs. Three directors attended externally offered director training programs in 2010.

Communications With Directors

        The Corporation has established means for shareholders or others to send communications to the Board. Persons interested in communicating with the Board, its individual directors or its Committees may send communications in writing to the Corporate Secretary or the Chairman of the Board. The communication should be sent in care of the Corporate Secretary, Ball Corporation, by mail to P.O. Box 5000; Broomfield, Colorado 80038-5000 or facsimile transmission to 303-460-2127.

        In accordance with the NYSE and SEC requirements, the Corporation has established additional means for interested parties to send communications to the Board and selected Committees, which are described on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance."

        Shareholder proposals for inclusion in the Corporation's proxy materials will continue to be handled and must be communicated as disclosed in this Proxy Statement on page 55.

Meetings of Nonmanagement and Independent Directors

        The Board meets regularly and not less than four times per year. Nonmanagement directors meet regularly, usually in conjunction with a regular Board meeting. Independent directors meet at least annually. Georgia R. Nelson served as Presiding Director for meetings of nonmanagement and independent directors held in 2010.

Director Independence Standards

        Pursuant to the NYSE Listing Standards, the Board has adopted a policy adhering to the director independence requirements of the NYSE in determining the independence of directors. These standards are described on the

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Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance."

        The Board has determined that a majority of the Board is independent, and the Board has determined that based upon the NYSE independence standards, during 2010 each of the members of the Board was and currently is independent with the exception of Messrs. Fiedler, Hayes and Hoover.

CERTAIN COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD

        The standing committees of the Board are the Audit, Nominating/Corporate Governance, Human Resources and Finance Committees.

Audit Committee:

        The primary purpose of the Audit Committee is to assist the Board in fulfilling its responsibilities to oversee management's conduct and the integrity of the Corporation's public financial reporting process including the overview of (1) accounting policies, (2) the system of internal accounting controls over financial reporting, (3) disclosure controls and procedures, (4) the performance of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm of the Corporation ("independent auditor"), (5) the Internal Audit Department, and (6) oversight of our risk management. The Audit Committee is responsible for engaging and evaluating the Corporation's independent auditor, including the independent auditor's qualifications and independence; resolving any differences between management and the independent auditor regarding financial reporting; preapproving all audit and non-audit services provided by the independent auditor; and establishing procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints regarding accounting, internal accounting controls or auditing matters.

        Members of the Audit Committee are Ms. Nicholson and Messrs. Alspaugh, Smart, Solso and van der Kaay. The Board has determined that each member of the Audit Committee is independent and financially literate, has accounting or financial management expertise and is an Audit Committee financial expert under the NYSE Listing Standards and the SEC regulations. The Audit Committee met five times during 2010.

        The Report of the Audit Committee is set forth on page 48. The Committee has considered the non-audit services provided during 2010 and 2009 by the independent auditor as disclosed below and determined the services were compatible with maintaining the auditor's independence. The Committee believes the fees paid to the independent auditor in respect of the services were appropriate, necessary and cost efficient in the management of the business of the Corporation and are compatible with maintaining the auditor's independence.

Audit Fees and Services

        The following table represents fees for professional services rendered by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for the audit of the Corporation's annual consolidated financial statements and quarterly reports and the auditor's report under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 for fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2009, together with fees for audit-related services and tax services rendered by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP during fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2009. Audit-related services for 2010 consisted of consultations related to a comfort letter for the Corporation's 2010 bond offering, advice related to the sale of a business segment and discontinued operations presentation, derivative transactions, various local and special audits, joint venture consultations, including consolidation, audit of specific accounting matters, and various consents related to SEC filings. Tax fees consisted principally of tax compliance, including tax compliance matters related to tax audits and return preparation fees and fees for tax consultations. Other fees primarily included fees related to due

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diligence assistance on various acquisitions and advisory services related to consolidation and reporting process improvement initiatives.

        The Audit Committee's Charter requires management to submit for preapproval all audit, audit-related and non-audit-related services to be performed by the independent auditor. Management and the independent auditor submit a report of fees for review and preapproval by the Committee on a quarterly basis. The Audit Committee requires management and the independent auditor to submit a report at least annually regarding audit, audit-related, tax and all other fees paid by the Corporation to the independent auditor for services rendered in the immediately preceding two fiscal years. The Committee considers whether the fees for non-audit and audit-related services are compatible with maintaining the auditor's independence and requires management and the independent auditor to confirm this as well. The Audit Committee preapproved 100 percent of all of the above-referenced fees paid in 2010 and 2009 for services that were provided by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

        There were no hours expended by persons other than the independent auditor's full-time, regular employees on the independent auditor's engagement to audit the Corporation's financial statements.

        A copy of the Audit Committee Charter is attached as Annex I to this Proxy Statement and is set forth on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance."

Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee:

        The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for assisting the Board in fulfilling its responsibility to identify qualified individuals to become Board members; recommending to the Board the selection of Board nominees for the next Annual Meeting of Shareholders; addressing the independence and effectiveness of the Board by advising and making recommendations on matters involving the organization and operation of the Board, Corporate Governance Guidelines and directorship practices; overseeing the evaluation of the Board and its Committees; and reviewing and assessing the Corporation's Sustainability activities and performance. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee utilizes the standards set forth below for considering director nominees.

        Members of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee are Messrs. Alspaugh, Lehman and Taylor and Ms. Nelson. The Board has determined that the members of the Committee are independent under the NYSE Listing Standards. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee met four times during 2010.

        The Board has established a process whereby nominees for the Board may be submitted by members of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, shareholders and any other persons. The Committee considers these recommended candidates in light of criteria set forth below.

        The Committee will seek candidates who meet at a minimum the following criteria: (1) candidates who have sufficient time to attend or otherwise be present at Board, relevant Board Committee and Shareholders' meetings; (2) candidates who will subscribe to Ball Corporation's Corporate Governance Guidelines and the Executive Officers and Directors Ethics Statement; (3) candidates who demonstrate credentials and experience in a broad range of corporate matters; (4) candidates who have experience, qualifications, attributes and skills that would qualify them to

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serve as a director; (5) candidates who will subscribe to the finalized strategic and operating plans of the Corporation as approved by the Board from time to time; (6) candidates who are not affiliated with special interest groups that represent major causes or constituents; and (7) candidates who meet the criteria, if any, for being a director of the Corporation as set forth in the Indiana Business Corporation Law, the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of the Corporation.

        The Committee will apply the principles of diversity in consideration of candidates. The Committee may utilize and pay third-party consultants to identify and screen candidates on a confidential basis for service on the Board. The Committee will also determine candidates' qualifications in light of the standards set by the Committee and by evaluating the qualifications of all candidates in an attempt to select the most qualified nominees suited to serve as a director while attempting to ensure that a majority of the Board is independent and, where needed, to meet the NYSE and SEC requirements for financial literacy, accounting or financial management expertise or audit committee financial expert status.

        The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee will consider candidates recommended by shareholders. Any such recommendation should be in writing and addressed to the Chair, Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee, in care of the Corporate Secretary, Ball Corporation, by mail to P.O. Box 5000, Broomfield, Colorado 80038-5000.

        The Committee received no recommendations for candidates as nominees for the Board from a security holder or group of security holders that beneficially owned more than 5 percent of the Corporation's voting Common Stock for at least one year as of the date of the recommendation.

        A copy of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee Charter is attached as Annex II to this Proxy Statement and is set forth on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance."

Human Resources Committee:

        The primary purpose of the Human Resources Committee is to assist the Board in fulfilling its responsibilities related to the evaluation and compensation of the Chief Executive Officer and overseeing the compensation of the other executive officers of the Corporation; reviewing and approving the schedule of salary ranges and grades for the salaried employees of the Corporation; approving the Corporation's stock and cash incentive compensation programs including awards to executive officers and the number of shares to be optioned and/or granted from time to time to employees of the Corporation; approving and receiving reports on major benefit plans, plan changes and determinations and discontinuations of benefit plans; discussing the performance evaluation system and succession planning system of the Corporation, including discussions with the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer about the succession plan for the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer; hiring experts, including executive compensation consultants, as deemed appropriate to advise the Committee; assessment of compensation-related risks; and authorizing the filing of required reports with federal, state and local governmental agencies.

        Members of the Human Resources Committee are Messrs. Smart, Solso and Taylor and Ms. Nelson. The Board has determined that the members of the Committee are independent under the NYSE Listing Standards. The Human Resources Committee met four times during 2010. A copy of the Human Resources Committee Charter is attached as Annex III to this Proxy Statement and is set forth on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance."

Finance Committee:

        The Finance Committee assists the Board in fulfilling its responsibility to oversee management in the financing and related risk management of the Corporation, the status of the Corporation's retirement plans and insurance policies and the Corporation's policies relating to interest rates, commodity hedging and currency hedging. The Committee may hire experts as deemed appropriate to advise the Committee in the performance of its duties. The Committee reports to the Board concerning the financing of the Corporation and the performance of the Committee.

        The members of the Finance Committee are Messrs. Fiedler, Lehman and van der Kaay and Ms. Nicholson. The Committee met four times during 2010. A copy of the Finance Committee Charter is attached as Annex IV to this Proxy Statement and is set forth on the Corporation's Web site at www.ball.com under the "Corporate" page, section "Investors," under the subsection "Financial Information," and under the link, "Corporate Governance."

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BOARD MEETINGS AND ANNUAL MEETING

        The members of the Board are expected to attend all meetings of the Board, relevant Committee meetings and the Annual Meeting of Shareholders. The Board held seven meetings during 2010. Every director attended 75 percent or more of the aggregate of the total number of meetings of the Board and the total number of meetings held by all committees of the Board on which the director served. All directors attended the 2010 Annual Meeting.

TRANSACTIONS WITH RELATED PERSONS, PROMOTERS AND CERTAIN CONTROL PERSONS

        Ball Corporation has adopted a policy with respect to transactions with related persons requiring its executive officers and directors to comply with all SEC and NYSE requirements concerning transactions between the Corporation and "related persons," as defined in the applicable SEC and NYSE rules. With respect to related persons, David L. Taylor currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of a wholly owned subsidiary of Ball Corporation, and is the spouse of Lisa A. Pauley, an executive officer of the Corporation. For 2010, Mr. Taylor's base salary was approximately $392,000. To facilitate compliance with such policy, the Board adopted procedures for the review, approval or ratification of any transaction required to be reported under the applicable rules. The policy provides that each executive officer and director will promptly report to the Chairman of the Board any transaction with the Corporation undertaken or contemplated by such officer or director, by any beneficial owner of 5 percent or more of the Corporation's voting securities or by any immediate family member. The Chairman of the Board will refer the transaction to the General Counsel for review and recommendations. Upon receipt of such review and recommendations, the matter will be brought before the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee to consider whether the transaction in question should be approved, ratified, suspended, revoked or terminated. This policy for transactions with related persons is in writing and is part of the Ball Corporation Executive Officers and Directors Ethics Statement. The written form of the policy can be found on the Corporation's Web site as indicated in the section "Policies on Business Ethics and Conduct" on page 11.

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

REPORT OF THE HUMAN RESOURCES COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

        The Human Resources Committee of the Board of Directors ("Committee") has reviewed the following Compensation Discussion and Analysis and discussed its contents with members of the Corporation's management. Based on this review and discussion, the Committee has recommended that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis ("CD&A") be incorporated by reference in the Corporation's Annual Report on Form 10-K and as set out in this Proxy Statement.

Georgia R. Nelson
George M. Smart
Theodore M. Solso
Stuart A. Taylor II

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EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

        Ball Corporation experienced another good year in 2010, both financially and operationally, as we reported strong performance in sales, earnings and earnings per share. Our financial performance provided a total return to shareholders of 32.6 percent, based on stock price appreciation plus reinvested dividends. This compares to a 12.8 percent return of the S&P 500 and the 11.0 percent return of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company also generated significant free cash flow of $506 million. Free cash flow is a key component of our business strategy as it is used to invest in our businesses, make acquisitions, return value to our shareholders through stock repurchases and dividends and reduce debt. We also achieved economic value added profitability greater than 2009 levels and an after-tax return on invested capital of 11 percent.

        The year was also marked by a number of strategic business actions that position the company for continued success, including acquisitions in aluminum extruded container markets, expansion of our metal beverage packaging business in developing growth markets, divestiture of our plastic packaging business, the integration of four metal beverage packaging plants acquired in October 2009, significant program wins in our aerospace business, execution of our stock repurchase plan, successful debt refinancing and prudent balance sheet management. These results are due in large part to our focus on disciplined growth, operational excellence and talent management.

        The strong business performance in 2010 is a continuation of the performance trend we have delivered over the past 10 years. The graph below compares the Corporation's cumulative 10-year total shareholder return on common stock with the cumulative total returns of the Dow Jones US Containers & Packaging Index and the S&P 500 Index. The graph tracks the performance of a $100 investment in our common stock and in each of the indexes (assuming the reinvestment of all dividends) from December 31, 2000, to December 31, 2010.

Copyright© 2011 Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved. (www.researchdatagroup.com/S&P.htm)

Copyright© 2011 Dow Jones & Company. All rights reserved.

        Pay for Performance Serves as the Foundation of our Executive Compensation Program —The objective of our executive compensation program is to align the compensation of management with economic value creation for our shareholders. The Corporation has established and managed a performance-based executive compensation program that pays its executives as owners of the business and ensures that pay realized by executives is closely linked to the value realized by shareholders.

        The key components of our executive compensation program have remained substantially the same for several years. The Human Resources Committee ("Committee") is confident that our compensation programs and our "executives-as-owners" pay for performance approach to compensation has directly contributed to the successful performance of the business and has resulted in an executive team closely aligned with shareholders, including executive stock ownership levels well above the market standards based on customary stock ownership guidelines.

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        The major components of our executives-as-owners pay for performance approach are:

         Short-term incentive plan that pays for the degree of achievement of annual goals for economic value added at the corporate and business unit level. Economic value added measures the value created by the company in excess of its cost of capital. We believe that maximizing the after-tax return on invested capital while simultaneously minimizing the after-tax cost of capital in all our businesses is key to driving shareholder value. Our analysis indicates and we strongly believe that economic value added performance is highly correlated to stock price and shareholder returns.

         Long-term incentive structure that has performance-based pay tied to sustained capital efficiency and shareholder returns. The program has four ongoing components:

•

Long-term cash plan that rewards achievement relative to targeted three-year average ROAIC and Ball's relative shareholder returns over a three-year period.



•

Performance contingent restricted stock unit plan that builds executive ownership contingent on Ball achieving returns at or above its cost of capital over a three-year period.



•

Stock option plan that promotes share ownership directly in-line with gains to investors.



•

Deposit Share Program, used on a selective basis, that promotes share ownership by making awards of restricted stock units to executives contingent on an equivalent investment in Ball stock by that executive and the retention of those shares acquired by the executive for up to four years.

        Our Heavy Weighting of Compensation Mix to Performance Creates Pay for Performance Linkage —The charts below represent the mix of target total compensation awarded to the Corporation's CEO and other NEOs in 2010. Consistent with our executives-as-owners pay for performance philosophy, a large proportion of the target total compensation is variable based on performance, which constitutes pay at risk. The CEO is eligible to participate in the same executive programs as the CFO and the other NEOs; however, a larger proportion of his target total compensation is at risk. As shown below, 86 percent of the target total compensation awarded to the CEO and 82 percent awarded to the other NEOs in 2010 was based on elements that may vary from year to year depending on business performance. Additionally, 70 percent of the CEO's and 69 percent of the other NEOs' target total compensation was based on long-term performance of three years or more. This emphasis on longer term compensation, through performance-based long-term cash and equity awards, ensures a strong continued alignment between Ball's executive ownership and shareholder value creation objectives.

        We Are Committed to Prudent Corporate Governance —Another critical aspect of our compensation program is our adherence to a prudent corporate governance model and the continuous improvement of compensation practices. Notable elements are:

•

Our executive compensation consultant is engaged by and reports directly to the Committee.



•

Our Committee is composed entirely of independent directors who meet the NYSE standards.

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•

A formal risk assessment review of our compensation programs conducted by the Committee's executive compensation consultant concluded that our compensation practices, policies and program do not create risks that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company.



•

Stock ownership guidelines are established for executives and directors and have been attained by all.



•

External marketplace (general industry and peer group) benchmarking, internal pay comparisons among executives (internal equity) and executive tally sheets are instrumental in compensation decisions.



•

Any perquisites provided to executives are of nominal value (executive physicals, financial planning) and we do not provide gross-up payments on such perquisites.



•

Our change in control agreements do not exceed two times pay and require a termination of employment following a change in control ("double trigger") before severance benefits are triggered. Excise tax gross-ups have been eliminated for any new change in control agreements entered into after January 1, 2010.



•

We included a recoupment or "clawback" provision to our Stock and Cash Incentive Plan that was approved by shareholders at the 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. This provision provides that in the case of fraud or intentional misconduct by any executive at a level of vice president or above, full reimbursement of any incentive compensation or cancellation of any outstanding awards may result.



•

Dividend equivalents related to performance contingent restricted stock units granted pursuant to the 2010 Stock and Cash Incentive Plan will be accrued and paid only when and if the performance condition is achieved and the restrictions on the units lapse.

        Composition of our NEOs —Our NEOs for 2010 were: R. David Hoover, Chairman and CEO; John Hayes, President and COO; Scott Morrison, Senior Vice President and CFO; Raymond Seabrook, EVP and COO, Global Packaging; and David Westerlund, EVP, Administration and Corporate Secretary.

        Effective January 1, 2010, the following promotions occurred: John Hayes to President and COO; Scott Morrison to Senior Vice President and CFO; Raymond Seabrook, our previous EVP and CFO, to EVP and COO, Global Packaging. In addition, R. David Hoover, Chairman and CEO, retired as CEO on January 26, 2011. He continues as nonexecutive Chairman. John Hayes assumed the position of President and CEO at that time. These thoughtfully planned and well-executed actions demonstrate successful focus on executive succession planning, talent management and transition execution.

        NEO Compensation Actions in 2010 —In January 2010, after review of competitive market data based on both general industry and peer group, the company's financial and operational performance, executive compensation consultant and CEO recommendations, tally sheet analysis, promotion actions leading to greater responsibility as defined above, executive individual performance and internal pay comparisons, the Committee authorized the following target total compensation elements for the CEO and other NEOs:

•

Base pay increases, which incorporated promotional increases for Messrs. Hayes, Morrison and Seabrook.



•

Continued utilization of the short-term incentive economic value added plan. Target incentive opportunity percentages remained the same for all NEOs except Messrs. Hayes, Morrison and Seabrook, which increased as a result of their promotions.



•

Continued utilization of the long-term cash plan for all NEOs. Target incentive opportunity percentages remained the same for all NEOs except Messrs. Hayes and Morrison, which increased as a result of their promotions.



•

The award of performance contingent restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights and stock options.

        Ball's target total compensation for the CEO and the other NEOs approximated, on average, the competitive market median and was appropriate for the Corporation considering general industry and Peer Group data, company performance, executive-specific factors such as individual performance and executive responsibility as well as internal equity.

        In April 2010, the Committee approved the use of the Deposit Share Plan for certain employees, which included Scott Morrison.

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COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

        This compensation discussion and analysis ("CD&A") is intended to provide an overview of the decisions used to determine the executive compensation tables included in this Proxy Statement.

Compensation Objectives and Philosophy

        The primary objective of Ball's executive compensation program is to attract and retain exceptional leaders and enable them to behave like an owner—one of our Five Keys to Success. When setting executive compensation, Ball applies a consistent approach for all executive officers and intends that the combination of compensation elements closely aligns the executives' financial interest with those of the shareholders. The program is mainly designed to:

•

Attract, motivate and retain a highly capable and performance-focused executive team;



•

Promote a culture of employee owners whose financial interests are aligned with those of the Corporation's shareholders;



•

Pay for performance such that total compensation reflects the individual performance of executives and the absolute and relative performance of Ball; and



•

Efficiently manage the potential stock dilution, cash flow, tax and reported earnings implications of executive compensation, consistent with the other objectives of the program.

        Target total compensation is comprised of base salary, annual economic value added incentive compensation and long-term incentive compensation in the form of both cash and equity. In support of Ball's emphasis on significant ownership by key executives, Ball delivers long-term incentive opportunities that encourage ownership. Generally, the amount of compensation realized or potentially realizable does not directly impact the level at which future pay opportunities are set. However, when granting equity awards, the Committee reviews and considers both individual performance and the number of outstanding and previously granted equity awards.

        In addition to promoting share ownership, the Corporation's executive compensation objectives and philosophy focus on rewarding performance. This means that shareholder returns along with corporate, operating unit and individual performance, both short-term and long-term, determine the largest portion of executive pay.

Role of the Human Resources Committee and Executive Compensation Consultant

        The Human Resources Committee ("Committee") oversees the administration of the executive compensation program and determines the compensation of the executive officers of the Corporation. The Committee is solely composed of nonmanagement directors, all of whom meet the independence requirements of the NYSE. To assist the Committee in discharging its responsibilities, the Committee has retained an independent consultant ("Consultant"). This Consultant is employed by Pay Governance, LLC. The Consultant is engaged by and reports directly to the Committee. Specifically, the Consultant's role is to develop recommendations for the Committee related to all aspects of executive compensation programs and the Consultant works with management to obtain information necessary to develop the recommendations.

        During the first half of 2010, the Consultant was employed by Towers Watson. Since the majority of such consulting occurs in the last two quarters of the year, minimal executive compensation services were provided by Towers Watson in 2010. Effective July 1, 2010, the Consultant became an employee of Pay Governance, LLC, an independent company that is not affiliated with Towers Watson. The total fees paid for executive compensation services to Towers Watson for the period of January 1, 2010, thru June 30, 2010, were $56,716. The total fees for executive compensation services provided to the Committee by Pay Governance from July 1, 2010, to December 31, 2010, were $183,394. Pay Governance, LLC provides no other services to the Corporation.

        The total fees for other services provided to the Corporation by Towers Watson during 2010 were $5,312,177. Towers Watson provides health and welfare and retirement plan strategy, design and actuarial services to the Corporation. The decision to engage Towers Watson for such services was determined by the executive overseeing the benefits organization and approved by the Executive Vice President, Administration. The Consultant had no role in the delivery of the health and welfare and retirement services described above. The Committee is assured that the services provided

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by the Consultant were objective and not influenced by the other services provided to the Corporation by Towers Watson because of the following: (1) the contractual arrangement for executive compensation services provided to the Committee was completely separate from the arrangement of other services provided to the Corporation; (2) the Consultant received no compensation based on the fees charged to the Corporation for other services; and (3) the Consultant did not participate in Towers Watson sales meetings regarding opportunities at the Corporation. Additionally, the individual executive compensation consultant's qualifications, expertise and protocols ensure that the services provided to the Committee are both objective and of high quality.

Process for Determining Executive Compensation

        Typically, the Committee reviews and adjusts executive total compensation levels, including equity grants annually in January of each year. This practice was utilized when reviewing and adjusting 2010 executive total compensation.

        The CEO's target total compensation package is set by the Committee during an executive session based on the Committee's review of the competitive information prepared by the Consultant, assessment of the CEO's individual performance in conjunction with the financial and operating performance of the Corporation, and appropriate business judgment.

        A recommendation for the target total compensation of the Corporation's other executive officers, including the CFO and other NEOs, is made by the CEO after reviewing the executive's and the Corporation's performance in conjunction with the executive's responsibility and experience when compared to the competitive information prepared by the Consultant. The compensation package for the other executive officers, including the CFO and the other NEOs, is established by the Committee taking into consideration the recommendation of the CEO and the executive officer's individual job responsibilities, experience and overall performance.

        To facilitate this process, the Consultant creates tally sheets for each executive, which are used by the Committee when setting target total compensation for the CEO and other executive officers. Tally sheets outline each executive's annual target and actual pay as well as total accumulated pay under various performance and employment scenarios and corporate performance, both recent and projected. The Consultant also prepares for the Committee an independent review and recommendation of the CEO's compensation. In its deliberations, the Committee meets with the CEO and other members of senior management, as appropriate, to discuss the application of the competitive benchmarking (pay and performance) relative to the unique structure and needs of the Corporation.

Market Benchmarking

        The Corporation begins the annual process by reviewing each executive officer's target total compensation in relation to the 50th percentile of comparably sized companies based on general industry data. The Corporation also takes into account, as an additional reference point, competitive compensation data from a selected group of peer companies consisting of leading container and packaging, distiller and brewer, food, household durable and nondurable goods companies ("Peer Group"). This general industry and Peer Group data is gathered by the Consultant and presented to the Corporation and the Committee in reports that provide a comparative analysis of our executive officer compensation to this competitive market compensation. The Consultant works in collaboration with the Corporation's Compensation Department when preparing such reports.

        For 2010 executive compensation planning, the companies comprising Ball's Peer Group included the following:

        During the third quarter of 2010, the Committee engaged the Consultant to assess whether the Peer Group required changes to ensure it is reflective of Ball's business type and competitive market for talent. In determining

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potential changes to comparator companies, the Consultant used both qualitative criteria and objective quantitative criteria, including:

•

Qualitative elements



•

Reflect the labor market for the Company's executive talent, in terms of both industry and organizational complexity



•

Focus on direct peers from Ball's primary industry (containers and packaging)



•

Supplemented with two additional groups of related companies sufficient to create a stable peer group that can be used over time:



•

Nondurable consumer product companies—either where containers and packaging are a critical element of final product or with a higher focus on meeting annual performance expectations, individual consumer as ultimate purchaser of product, and



•

Broader manufacturing companies—specifically within the aerospace, office services and supplies capital goods, chemical, paper product and steel industries.



•

Quantitative elements



•

Organizational scope:



•

Primary measure: Revenue of ~$3 billion to $15 billion



•

Secondary measure: Market capitalization of ~$3 billion to $15 billion.



•

Financial metrics:



•

Market capitalization/revenue ratio: Multiples of ~ 0.5 to 2.0



•

Operating profit margin: Positive operating margin ranging from 5 to 20 percent



•

Three-year total shareholder return: No outlying large declines (given economic downturn), ideally outperforming the S&P 500

As a result of this assessment, the composition of the Peer Group was modified to include the following companies, which will be utilized for 2011 executive compensation planning:

 

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Risk Assessment

        The Committee has reviewed the concept of risk as it relates to our compensation programs and does not believe our compensation programs encourage excessive or inappropriate risk. Overall, our internal risk assessment confirms that our compensation arrangements are low in risk and do not foster undue risk taking, because they are performance driven and have strong governance and control mechanisms. The Committee's executive compensation Consultant conducted a thorough risk assessment of our executive compensation programs and assessed numerous criteria with particular attention to whether those programs implicate financial risks, operational risks or reputational risks. The Consultant reported to the Committee that Ball's executive compensation programs are low in risk. In reaching that conclusion, the Consultant noted that there is strong Human Resource Committee involvement, long-term incentives are predominantly risk-based equity and thus tied to shareholder returns, market comparisons are utilized, ownership requirements are applied and Ball has embraced "economic value added" principles in its compensation for many years.

Stock Ownership Guidelines

        Consistent with its ownership philosophy, Ball has established guidelines that all executive officers retain minimum ownership levels of the Ball Corporation Common Stock. As of December 31, 2010, all executive officers including the CEO and the other NEOs have met their ownership guidelines. The 2010 stock ownership guidelines (minimum requirements) were as follows:

        Additionally, the Corporation has established a 10,000 share stock ownership guideline for each nonmanagement director.

        When the Corporation's share price appreciates, some executives and/or directors may desire to lock in a portion of that appreciation, thereby managing a portion of the economic risk associated with concentrated holdings of Ball Common Stock. The Corporation has evaluated the potential approaches that executives and directors can use. As a result of this review, executives are permitted to use prepaid variable forward contracts or contracts to purchase or sell Ball Corporation Common Stock pursuant to SEC Rule 10b5-1. Put and call options and other hedging transactions involving Corporation stock (including selling the stock "short") are not permitted.

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Elements of Ball's Executive Compensation Program and 2010 Performance

        The primary elements of Ball's executive compensation program are designed to be consistent with the compensation objectives described above. The elements are outlined in the following table. The purpose of each element is also provided to demonstrate how each fits with the overall compensation objectives, specifically, stock ownership and pay for performance.

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Specifics Related to the 2010 Executive Compensation Elements

Base Salary

        The level of base salary takes into account job responsibilities, experience level and market competitiveness. Base salaries are generally reviewed annually in late January, with any changes becoming effective retroactively on January 1 of that year. Annual adjustments are based on individual performance, performance of the area of responsibility, the Corporation's performance, competitiveness versus the external market and internal merit increase budgets.

Annual Incentive

        This short-term pay for performance incentive is used to encourage and reward the CEO and other NEOs for making decisions that improve performance as measured by economic value added. It is designed to produce sustained shareholder value by establishing a direct link between economic value added and incentive compensation. This annual incentive to the CEO and other NEOs is paid consistent with the terms of the Ball Corporation Stock and Cash Incentive Plan and the Ball Corporation Annual Incentive Compensation Plan, which are administered by the Committee. Economic value added was selected as the measure for Ball's Annual Incentive Compensation Plan because it has been demonstrated to correlate management's incentive with total shareholder return. Economic value added is computed by subtracting a charge for the use of invested capital from net operating profit after-tax as illustrated below.

        Generating profits in excess of both operating and capital costs (debt and equity) creates economic value added. If economic value added improves, value has been created.

        Performance Measures —Targets are established annually for each operating unit and for the Corporation as a whole based on prior performance. The Plan design motivates continuous improvement in order to achieve payouts at or above target over time.

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        The Corporation's and/or operating unit's economic value added financial performance determines the amount, if any, of awards earned under the Annual Incentive Compensation Plan. Such awards are based on actual economic value added performance relative to the established economic value added target. For any one year, the economic value added target is equal to the sum of the prior year's target economic value added and one-half the amount of the prior year's economic value added gain or shortfall relative to the prior year's economic value added target and may be calculated as follows:

        Improvement in economic value added occurs when the amount of net operating profit after-tax less a charge for capital employed in the business increases over time. It establishes a direct link between annual incentive compensation and continuous improvement of return on invested capital relative to a 9 percent "hurdle rate." The Corporation has established 9 percent as the "hurdle rate" when evaluating capital expenditures and strategic initiatives in most regions in which we do business. This "hurdle rate" is above the Corporation's true cost of capital.

        For a given year, a payout at 100 percent of target annual incentive compensation is achieved when actual economic value added is equal to the target economic value added target. Actual annual incentive payments each year can range from 0 to 200 percent of the targeted incentive opportunity based on corporate performance and/or the performance of the operating unit over which the executive has responsibility. For the Corporation's consolidated plan, a payout of 0 percent is realized when actual economic value added is $98 million less than targeted economic value added. A payout of 200 percent is achieved when actual economic value is $49 million in excess of target economic value added. A payout greater than 200 percent may be achieved if actual economic value added is more than $49 million higher than target economic value added; however any amounts over 200 percent of target are banked and remain at risk until paid. The cumulative bank balance is paid over time in one-third increments based on corporate and/or operating unit performance.

        Target Incentive Percentages —This short-term performance-based incentive opportunity is established each year as a percentage of an executive's annual base salary and is targeted at approximately the 50th percentile of the competitive market with the opportunity to earn more for above-target performance or less for below-target performance. For 2010, the target incentive opportunities and the actual award earned for the CEO and other NEOs are as follows:

        Certain executives including the CEO and the other NEOs may elect to defer the payment of all or a portion of their annual incentive compensation into the 2005 Deferred Compensation Plan and/or the 2005 Deferred Compensation Company Stock Plan. The executive becomes a general unsecured creditor of the Corporation with respect to amounts deferred. Amounts deferred to the 2005 Deferred Compensation Plan, or its successor, are notionally "invested" among various investment funds available under the applicable Plan. A participant's amounts are not actually invested in the investment funds for their account, but the return on the participant's account is determined as if the amounts were invested in those funds. Amounts deferred into the 2005 Deferred Compensation Company Stock Plan receive a 20 percent Corporation match with a maximum match of $20,000 per year. Amounts deferred into this Plan will be represented in the participant's account as stock units, with each unit having a value equivalent to one share of Ball Corporation Common Stock. Participants may later reallocate a prescribed number of units to other notional investment funds, comparable to those described above, subject to specified time constraints. One-half of the amount deferred into the 2005 Deferred Compensation Company Stock Plan must remain deferred until retirement or other termination of employment.

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Long-Term Incentives

        This element of compensation is designed to provide ownership and cash opportunities to promote the achievement of longer term financial performance goals and enhanced total shareholder returns. The Corporation's long-term incentive opportunity is generally provided through a combination of equity and cash awards, which the Committee believes best matches the compensation principles for the program. In 2010, long-term incentives awarded prior to shareholder approval of the 2010 Stock and Cash Incentive Plan in April were provided pursuant to the existing 2005 Stock and Cash Incentive Plan; and awards following that approval were pursuant to the newly approved 2010 Plan. This Plan permits grants of cash awards, stock options, stock appreciation rights or stock awards (e.g., shares, restricted stock and restricted stock units).

        In 2010, Ball delivered approximately 25 percent of the target long-term incentive through performance-based cash awards and approximately 75 percent through performance-based equity awards. This award mix was set to achieve the objectives described above, while viewed in light of market practices and cost implications. The total amount of long-term incentives, based on the grant date expected value, was established in relation to the 50th percentile of the competitive market as well as individual performance and the Corporation's financial and operating performance. This emphasis on long-term compensation, through performance-based long-term cash and equity awards, ensures a strong continued alignment with Ball's executive ownership and shareholder value creation objectives.

        Performance-Based Cash Awards —Ball's performance-based long-term cash incentive award is intended to focus executives on the achievement of multiyear performance goals that will enhance shareholder value. The Corporation's total shareholder return and return on average invested capital ("ROAIC") are considered in determining the amount, if any, of awards earned under the Corporation's Long-Term Cash Incentive Plan ("LTCIP"). Performance is generally measured on a cumulative basis over a three-year performance period. Awards pursuant to the LTCIP are generally made on an annual basis such that three performance periods overlap. Any actual award earned is paid at the end of the three-year performance period.

        The 2008 through 2010, 2009 through 2011, and 2010 through 2012 performance periods provide executives the opportunity to earn awards based on a combination of two performance measures. One-half of the award is based on the Corporation's three-year total shareholder return as measured against the total shareholder returns of a group of companies in the S&P 500 not including companies in the S&P 500 Index that are classified as being part of the Financial or Utilities industry sectors or the Transportation industry group. Companies added to the S&P 500 during the performance period are also excluded. Total shareholder return is measured by comparing the average daily closing price and dividends of the Corporation in the third year of the performance cycle with the average daily closing price and dividends prior to the start of the performance cycle relative to the distribution of the equivalent total shareholder returns during the performance cycle of the group of companies as described above. The target performance requirement for the total shareholder returns measure is the 50th percentile of the S&P group described above. The other one-half of the award is based on ROAIC performance over the three-year period. ROAIC is calculated by dividing the average of the Corporation's net operating profit after-tax over the relevant performance period by its average invested capital over such period. The target performance requirement for the ROAIC measure is 9 percent, which is above the Corporation's estimated weighted average cost of capital. The target, minimum and maximum performance requirements are as follows:

        For each measure, minimum performance results in a zero payout factor, target performance results in a 100 percent payout factor and maximum performance results in a 200 percent payout factor for the respective one-half of the award. Performance between minimum, target and maximum is extrapolated to determine the payout factor.

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        The incentive opportunity is established as a percentage of the executive's average base salary plus target annual incentive over the three-year performance period. For the 2010 through 2012 performance period, the incentive opportunities for the CEO and other NEOs are as follows:

        The executive's award for any given performance cycle is calculated as follows:

        Actual payments at the end of the performance period for each factor (total shareholder return ("TSR") and ROAIC) can range from 0 to 100 percent of the target opportunity based on actual performance relative to the established performance measures described above.

        As a result of the Corporation's actual performance for the 2008 through 2010 performance period, cash payouts (made in early 2011) for the CEO and other NEOs in the plan are 200 percent of the target opportunities and are reported in the Summary Compensation Table. The potential award value of the 2010 through 2012 performance period, which was awarded to the NEOs in 2010, is reported in the Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table.

        Special Acquisition Incentive Plan —In conjunction with the 2009 acquisition of certain beverage can manufacturing operations, the Corporation implemented an Acquisition-Related Special Incentive Plan designed to motivate participating employees to successfully integrate the acquisition into the Corporation. Payouts under this Plan are based on cumulative earnings before interest and taxes and cumulative cash flow over a 39-month period, with awards, if any, made at 15 months, 27 months and 39 months. Minimum, target and maximum values have been established for each performance measure; however, due to the competitive sensitive nature of such financial metrics, these values have been excluded. A payout at or near target is the most likely outcome. This incentive opportunity is established as a percentage of an executive's average base salary over the 39-month performance period and is provided below for each NEO.

        The executive's actual award will be calculated as follows:

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