Air Liquide will access the bond market

To finance its growth ambitions announced in February 2007, Air Liquide will, in the near future, access the bond market under its current Euro Medium Term Note (EMTN) program. Complementary financing in euros and yen will be put in place in due course.

These funds will partly finance the recently finalized acquisitions of the minority BOC stake in Japan Air Gases, the joint venture shares of BOC in Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Brunei, and also the acquisition of Linde UK. These acquisitions, which total approximately €1 billion, have enabled Air Liquide to acquire full ownership of these activities.

Over the next five year period (2007-2011) the Group expects to invest over €10 billion focusing on emerging markets, hydrogen, energy conversion and healthcare, in order to deliver accelerated revenue growth of 8-10% p.a. on average over the period. The Group productivity and efficiency programs should also contribute to further increase its cash flow and net profit.

This accelerated business development combined with the strong distribution policy will deliver sustainable long term shareholder value. This value creation will be further enhanced by regular share repurchases equivalent to 2-2.5% of the share capital per year (approximately €500-550 million p.a.) subject to levels of investment, acquisition opportunities and market conditions.

The Group’s objective is to maintain an “A level rating” in line with the long term nature of its customer relationships while benefiting from favorable financing conditions. During this growth phase, the net debt to equity ratio could increase to approximately 80%. Taking into account its capacity to generate strong cash flow and the new growth perspectives, Air Liquide is confident in its ability to deliver sustained value creation for all its shareholders.