Compagnie Plastic Omnium SE

Regulatory Filings • May 10, 2011

Paris, 10 May 2011

Plastic Omnium Environment strengthens its development potential in the fast-growing market for underground containers used for household waste collection

Plastic Omnium Environment has announced the acquisition of Rotherm, one of Europe's leading manufacturers of underground waste containers. Located in Stadtlohn in northern Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia), Rotherm generated revenue of €12 million in 2010.

With the acquisition, Plastic Omnium Environment is the only company in Europe with an innovative, end-to-end offer of underground containers that it designs at the Sigmatech R&D center in France by adapting them to the client city's architecture style. It then manufactures the containers – some of them at Rotherm – and installs them. The offer also includes washing and maintenance services thanks in particular to the Company's fleet of special cleaning trucks. In addition, containers can be equipped with a smartcard reader, thereby enabling the implementation of incentive-based invoicing systems.

The acquisition of Rotherm strengthens Plastic Omnium Environment's leadership in a market that is expanding rapidly in Europe, where the number of underground containers is expected to triple by 2015. In addition to taking up less space in public areas, these large-volume units also require fewer collection rounds, thereby reducing both truck traffic and operating costs for public authorities.

In September 2010, Plastic Omnium Environment was chosen by the Greater Rouen Urban Community to supply and install 3,700 underground containers, the largest contract of its kind ever awarded in Europe. Orders have already been received for some 10,000 underground containers.

With total revenue of €472 million in 2010, Plastic Omnium Environment has set a goal of generating €100 million in revenue from underground containers by 2015.