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LONDON FIRST CENTRE NEWS RELEASE

LONDON: A WEALTH OF OPPORTUNITY AND INNOVATION FOR

WASTE MANAGEMENT AND RECYLING COMPANIES

Michael Charlton, Chief Executive of inward investment agency London First Centre, and Chris Searles, head of Capital Projects for London Remade, will be meeting international waste management and recycling firms at the 2003 WasteExpo in New Orleans next week (June 3-5 2003) to highlight growing industry opportunities in London.

The UK capital is the largest producer of domestic waste in Europe, producing over 28 million tonnes of waste annually. With waste production on the rise and new European Union waste regulations in place, the city of London has made a substantial new commitment to solve the growing waste problem through London Remade. London Remade is a strategic partnership comprising the business community, London local authorities and regional government, the waste management industry and the not-for-profit sector. Its aim is to revolutionise the way the city manages its waste through a $30 million programme designed to develop and diversify markets for recycled materials.

Lucrative business opportunities exist in London for waste management and recycling firms as a result of London's financial pledge to clean up the city, supported by:

• The need for a "post-landfill" solution to waste management in London
• Rising collection opportunities for waste electronic and electrical equipment, recovered tyres, recovered plastics, paper recycling, and glass reprocessing
• Opportunities to fill the void of reprocessing facilities and localized collection centers
• Building a comprehensive waste management structure for London that links municipal systems.

Additionally, a number of financial incentives and programs are available to North American businesses involved in the manufacturing industry, including:

• Regional Selective Assistance programs
• European funding grants for improvements to infrastructure, skills and training
• Tax relief in respect to R&D costs incurred by small, medium, and large firms
• 3,700 top-rated researchers and several universities with research expertise in pertinent R&D fields such as chemistry, earth sciences, environmental sciences, materials, metallurgy and materials, and engineering.

London First Centre is issuing a new business briefing at WasteExpo 2003 which demonstrates that London is in a prime position to attract cutting-edge environmental technologies firms from around the world owing to the opportunities presented by recent European Union and UK government legislation. These directives, combined with London's increasing, consumer-focused population and the rapidly shrinking landfill capacity, mean that levels of recycling will increase sharply over the next decade.

The targets set by new legislation include:

• The EU Landfill Directive requires that by 2010, the amount of biodegradable municipal waste going to landfill must be reduced to 75% of the total produced in 1995
• The UK government has recognised the fact that alternative waste methods must be found and established 'Waste Strategy 2000' in compliance with the EU landfill directive. This strategy aims to recycle or compost at least 25% of household waste and recover value from 40% of municipal waste by 2005
• The EU has set down regulations for producer responsibility, which will have significant impact for packaging and packaging waste
• The EU's Waste and Electronics and Electrical Equipment (WEEE) Directive and the End of Life Vehicle (ELV) Directive are set to increase the levels of recycling on the electronic and electrical equipment sector. It requires that at least 74% of the weight of every electronic and electrical product be recycled and begins in 2004.

Major environmental technology and waste management companies already operating in the capital include Enviros, Onyx, Cleanaway, Cory Environmental, Shanks, Severnside Recycling and Valpak.

Opportunities for environmental technologies in London briefing can be found here: http://www.lfc.co.uk/sector_briefings/sb_1783.pdf

To find out more or to arrange a meeting with a London First Centre representative at WasteExpo 2003 please contact:

Angela Muller, Marketing Manager, North America, London First Centre on tel: +1 (888) 821-8867 mob: 703/407-4723 Fax: +1 (703) 903-8850 amuller@odellsimms.com

7704 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 20043

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UK Enquiries to:

Anna Barlow, Executive Director Marketing and Communications, London First Centre
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7665 1503 abarlow@lfc.co.uk Fax: +44 (0)20 7925 2022

Notes to editors:

London First Centre is the inward investment agency for the capital. It is a private and public sector partnership supported by the London business community through London First, the London Development Agency, Invest.UK (part of British Trade International, the lead government organisation for international trade and investment), and the Corporation of London. In eight years of operation, London First Centre's free consultancy service has directly assisted 620 companies from 35 countries around the world to locate or expand in the capital, leading to the creation of some 32,000 jobs. www.lfc.co.uk

London First is a business organisation supported by over 300 of the capital's major businesses. Its mission is to improve and promote London. London First's business members are in key sectors such as finance, professional services, property, IT, creative industries, hospitality and retail. Its membership also includes virtually all the higher education institutions, as well as further education colleges, NHS trusts and independent hospitals. www.london-first.co.uk

The London Development Agency is London's job-creation agency. Working for the Mayor, and in conjunction with business and a wide range of other organisations, the LDA actively pursues economic opportunities for London and all Londoners. It uses its financial resources, property and land assets, and its influence to support business, industry and the economy; attract investment; develop skills and knowledge; revitalise the city; promote equality and diversity; and unite London. www.lda.gov.uk