Director/PDMR Shareholding

Ashtead Group plc

13 July 2009

                               ASHTEAD GROUP PLC                               

Ashtead Group plc announces that on 13 July 2009 it made the annual awards for
2009 to 38 senior executives under its Performance Share Plan (`PSP').

Awards under the PSP comprise the conditional right to receive ordinary shares
of 10p each which normally vest on the third anniversary of grant subject to
continued employment and the meeting of challenging Total Shareholder Return
and Earnings Per Share targets established by the Remuneration Committee. The
Company intends to utilise shares held by the Company's Employee Share
Ownership Trust to fulfil any obligation to employees which may arise in 2012.

Included within the awards are the following awards made to the executive
directors of Ashtead Group plc:

Director             Number of Shares            Percentage of Issued
                     Covered by Award            Share Capital

Geoff Drabble        1,260,829                   0.23%

Sat Dhaiwal            405,530                   0.07%

Joe Phelan             686,735                   0.12%

Ian Robson             603,687                   0.11%

The exercise price for the above awards is £1 for all the ordinary shares to
which the award relates. No consideration was paid for the grant of any of
these awards.

Contacts:

Chris Cole Non-executive Chairman 0207 299 5562

Geoff Drabble Chief Executive 0207 726 9700