AXA Private Equity sells Vulcanic Paris, 8th June 2006.

AXA Private Equity has sold the Vulcanic Finances Group, one of the major European players in electrothermics and instrument transformers (a sector weighing approximately 50 million euros in revenue) to 21 Centrale Partners and to the management for 82.5 million euros.

AXA Private Equity purchased Vulcanic from the Dynaction group in July 2000 and has with the group for the last six years, notably guiding it through its restructuring and managerial transition phases as well as helping it to expand into connected businesses (instrument transformers with the purchase of RS Isolsec) and to strengthen its presence internationally (Germany, Spain).

This secondary LBO operation has been signed by 21 Centrale Partners in association with the management team and was driven by Christian Schott. AXA Private Equity had mandated Hawkpoint to manage the selling process. The CIC, which was participating in the previous LBO has arranged the financing of the transaction.

The Vulcanic Group intends to continue setting a dynamic pace for European expansion.

List of actors and advisers for the financing deal covering Vulcanic:

Seller:

AXA Private Equity: Philippe Poletti, Mathieu Antonini, Yann Chareton.

Advisers for AXA Private Equity:

• M&A advisers: Hawkpoint (Nadim Barouki, Pierre-Arnaud de Lacharrière)
• Legal council: Nomos (Jean-François Pourdieu, Guillaume Leclair).

Due diligence:

• Market: Advention (Frédéric Missé, Sébastien Murbach)
• Financial: Constantin (Isabelle de Bartsch, Geneviève Milleret)
• Environment: URS (Bertille Crichton).

Purchaser:

21 Centrale Partners: François Barbier, Alexandra Dupont

Advisers for purchasers:

• Legal council: Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw (Xavier Jaspar, Emilie Pennec)
• Financing:
• Financing senior: CIC (Brice Bourrely).
• Adviser to Financing senior: Linklaters (Arnaud Fromion)

Management:

Legal council: Lamartine Conseil

Press contact:

(33) 1 44 45 92 20
www.axaprivateequity.fr

AXA Private Equity
20, place Vendôme
75001 Paris