WINGAS GmbH & Co. KG Press Release 29 February 2012 Nicholas Neu PI-12-03 +49 561 301-3301 +49 561 301-1321 [email protected] WINGAS hives off storage activities into independent company With capacities of six billion cubic metres, astora will become the largest storage operator in Europe Kassel. The natural gas supply company WINGAS is hiving off its storage activities into an independent company. In future, the storage division of WINGAS, which was already unbundled within the company in 2006, will trade under the name of astora GmbH & Co. KG. “With the current storage facilities and storage projects that are close to the market, astora is well positioned on the European energy market,” commented Gerhard König, Management Spokesman of WINGAS, during the announcement of the new storage company. “Astora’s portfolio is of great interest to both suppliers and spot market traders alike. We are therefore confident that the new company will be a success.” Encompassing the largest natural gas storage facility in Western Europe in Rehden in Lower Saxony, the Haidach natural gas storage facility in Austria and the Jemgum storage project on the German-Dutch border, astora will have a storage capacity of six billion cubic metres in future – making it one of the largest storage operators in Europe. WINGAS is one of the largest natural gas suppliers in Germany. The energy company trades natural gas across Europe in Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Austria, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. Its customers include municipal utilities, regional gas suppliers, industrial firms and power plants. The companies of the WINGAS Group also operate and market transport and storage capacity as well as fibre-optics for telecommunication. Since 1990 WINGAS has invested around 4 billion euros in developing the energy infrastructure. astora GmbH & Co. KG will become one of the largest natural gas storage operators in Europe. In Rehden in North Germany, the company has the largest natural gas storage facility in Western Europe – with a working gas volume of over four billion cubic meters. The storage company also holds capacity in Central Europe's second largest storage facility in Haidach, Austria. To ensure a secure supply of natural gas to Europe, a natural gas storage facility is currently being constructed in Jemgum on the German-Dutch border. The construction of a further storage facility is also being planned in Saltfleetby in Great Britain. page 1 of 1 WINGAS GmbH & Co. KG / Press and Public Relations P.O. Box 104020 / 34112 Kassel, Germany / Phone +49 561 301-3301 / Fax +49 561 301-1321 / [email protected] / www.wingas.de 04.03 VN1470 D VN1470 04.03 ISO 9001: The Quality Management System of WINGAS is certified. M .