Genoa, 30 December 2013 - ERG has today reached an agreement with GDF SUEZ for the acquisition of shareholdings, corresponding to a 49% equity stake (indirectly held by GDF SUEZ and by Mitsui & Co.), in ISAB Energy, owner of the 528 MW IGCC power plant in Priolo Gargallo (Syracuse), ISAB Energy Services, the plant's operation and maintenance company and ISAB Energy Solare, which owns a 1 MW photovoltaic facility.
The total acquisition price for the three shareholdings has been set at 149.4 million Euro, in addition to which, at the time of the closing, ERG will take over quotaholder loans totalling 23.8 million Euro granted by the sellers to ISAB Energy and ISAB Energy Solare. Prior to the closing, ISAB Energy and ISAB Energy Services will pay quotaholders dividends totalling 52.5 million Euro, of which 25.7 million Euro pertaining to GDF SUEZ and Mitsui & Co and the remainder to ERG.

At the same time, ERG has signed an agreement with ISAB, a company belonging to the LUKOIL Group, for the sale of the ISAB Energy and ISAB Energy Services business lines, comprising above all the IGCC production plant and the personnel concerned with its operation and maintenance, to be finalised following the early termination of the CIP6 agreement. The price agreed for the asset value amounts to 20 million Euro.

The coming into effect of both agreements is conditional upon approval by the competent Antitrust Authority of both the acquisition of the equity interests and the sale of the ISAB Energy and ISAB Energy Services business lines, as well as the GSE's acceptance of early termination of the CIP6/92 agreement for the ISAB Energy plant, with effect from 1 July 2014.

The closing of the two transactions is scheduled to take place no later than the second quarter of 2014.

Luca Bettonte, ERG's Chief Executive Officer, commented: "the transactions come within our strategy to restructure our portfolio of activities and are in keeping with our definitive exit from the ISAB Refinery, which is closely integrated with ISAB Energy. Moreover, once concluded, they will allow ERG to further consolidate its financial resources with a view to supporting its future investments for the Group's growth and development. The agreements reached are also the result of the sound relationships that we have successfully developed with our international partners, a significant added value for the achievement of our business objectives."

In this transaction, UniCredit has acted as financial advisor and the firm DLA Piper as legal advisor.

This press release, issued at 5.35 pm (CET) on 30 December 2013, has been prepared pursuant to the Regulation implementing Legislative Decree no. 58 dated 24 February 1998, adopted by CONSOB under resolution no. 11971 of 14 May 1999, as amended and supplemented. It is available to the public at the offices of Borsa Italiana S.p.A. and on the Company's website (www.erg.it ) in the section "media/press releases".


Contacts:

Alessandra Mariotti Press Office - tel. + 39 010 2401364 mob. + 39 335 8053395 e-mail: stampa@erg.it
Emanuela Delucchi IR Manager - tel. + 39 010 2401806 - e-mail: edelucchi@erg.it
Matteo Bagnara IR - tel. + 39 010 2401423 - e-mail: ir@erg.it  - www.erg.it

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