Acquisition

Compagnie de Saint-Gobain
07 August 2007


                                                                  August 7, 2007

        Saint-Gobain doubles the size of its industrial mortars business
                   through the acquisition of the Maxit group


Saint-Gobain has announced the acquisition from HeidelbergCement of Maxit group,
manufacturer of industrial mortars. Maxit has 5,130 employees and in 2006
reported sales of €1,237 million.


With this transaction, Saint-Gobain continues its leadership strategy in
Construction Markets, doubling its size in industrial mortars (which, in 2006,
already represented €1 billion in products sold under the Weber trademark) and
in particular strengthens its ETICS (External Thermal Insulation Composite
System) solutions.


Geographical complementarity between Maxit and Weber is excellent: Weber is the
market leader in France and in Southern Europe, and very well established in
Eastern Europe while Maxit group is a leading player in Germany and in
Scandinavia. In addition, the two groups have a joint presence in many emerging
countries and in most western European countries. Maxit has 103 industrial units
in 30 countries and Weber has 80 industrial units in 27 countries.


Industrial mortars combine strong growth in emerging countries and sustained
growth in developed countries thanks to improvements in the exterior insulating
systems and productivity gains on building sites. Industrial mortars are
inherently local products, for which marketing and technical innovations play an
important role in terms of product formulations and specifications.


In addition to manufacturing industrial mortars, Maxit group produces clay-based
solutions for draining and insulating foundations, a widely-used technique in
Scandinavian countries.


Maxit's addition to the Construction Products Sector of Saint-Gobain will
provide opportunities for a variety of synergies with both Exterior Solutions
(particularly Weber mortars) and Interior Solutions (plaster, insulation
products). The Group is aiming for cost synergies of approximately €30 million.


The transaction has an enterprise value of €2,125 million (i.e., approximately
11 times Maxit's estimated operating income for 2007 after cost synergies) and
is subject to approval by relevant competition authorities. Finalization of the
transaction is expected by the fourth quarter of the year.


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