Performance Share Plan

Ashtead Group PLC
17 August 2005


RNS: 731168
                               ASHTEAD GROUP PLC
                             PERFORMANCE SHARE PLAN

Ashtead Group plc, the international equipment rental group serving the
construction, industrial and homeowner markets, announces that today, 17 August
2005, it made the annual awards for 2005 to 58 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 earnings per share and total
shareholder return targets established by the Remuneration Committee. The
Company intends to utilise a combination of existing shares held by the
Company's Employee Share Ownership Trust ('ESOT') and new shares to be purchased
by the ESOT to fulfil any obligation to employees which may arise in August
2008.
Included within the awards made yesterday are awards as follows to the executive
directors of Ashtead Group plc:

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

G B Burnett                           263,965                            0.066
S I Robson                            160,352                            0.040
C Miller                              143,159                            0.036
S S Dhaiwal                           111,013                            0.028

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.

The 176,469 ordinary shares conditionally granted to Mr S I Robson on 29 July
2002 under the Company's Investment Incentive Plan have today vested
unconditionally as the performance criteria attaching to the grant have been met
in full. Mr Robson has today sold 50,579 shares at £1.1425 per share to meet the
associated tax liability and has retained the balance of 125,890 shares.

Contacts:
Cob Stenham         Non-executive Chairman               020 7299 5562
George Burnett      Chief executive                      01372 362300




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