CDP approves 2012 half-year report: €4 billion in new resources. Amendments to articles of association approved. Ordinary and Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meetings called

2012 half-year report

Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) announces that the Board of Directors, meeting today under the chairmanship of Franco Bassanini, has approved the consolidated half-year financial report of the CDP Group.

The main financial and performance figures for the period of the parent company, CDP SpA, are discussed below:

During the first half of 2012, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti mobilised some €4 billion, of which €2.4 billion for economic support measures, €0.8 billion in loans to enterprises and public-private partnerships for infrastructure development and€0.4 billion for direct lending to public entities.

• Financial position:
  • Compared with the end of 2011, at 30 June 2012 assets increased by 8%, to €97 billion. The stock of loans to customers and banks rose by 2%, to more than €00 billion.
  • Postal funding expanded by 2.5%, reaching €224 billion. Total funding amounted to €76 billion, an increase of 8.5% compared with the end of 2011.
  • Shareholders’ equity rose by a substantial 8%, totalling €15.6 billion.
• Performance:
  • CDP performed strongly in the first half of 2012, with net interest income doubling to €,162 million compared with the corresponding period of the previous year.
  • net income for the period rose by more than 100%, reaching €1,454 million.

Summary of consolidated half-year financial statements

The consolidated half-year financial statements show net income pertaining to the shareholders of the parent company in the amount of €1,929 million (+59.3%).

Total assets amounted to €311,733 million (+8.6%), while shareholders’ equity pertaining to the shareholders of the parent company totalled €17,458 million (+12.5%).

The manager responsible for preparing the corporate financial reports, Andrea Novelli, declares pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article 154-bis of the Consolidated Law on Financial Intermediation that the accounting information contained in this press release corresponds to that in the accounting documentation, books and records.

Amendments of articles of association

The Board also approved the call of the Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meeting for 12 September 2012 in order to approve some amendments to the articles of association. The amendments were made necessary by the transfer from Eni to CDP of an equity interest of 30% less one share in the voting capital of Snam, which is scheduled to be carried out – subject to meeting a number of conditions and as already announced to investors – by mid-October this year.

The proposed amendments are intended to ensure the consistency of CDP’s articles of association with the provisions of the Prime Minister’s Order of 25 May 2012, which, in setting out the procedures for the disposal of Eni SpA’s holding in Snam SpA and designating CDP as the most appropriate entity to ensure a stable core of shareholders for Snam, specifies new governance arrangements designed to ensure the separation of the owner of natural gas production and supply activities from the owner and operator of gas transport activities. These arrangements also apply to the management of Terna SpA, applying – in general – to the management of the equity investments held by CDP in subsidiaries that operate key national energy infrastructure.

Calling of the Ordinary and Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meetings

In addition to calling the Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meeting to amend the articles of association as discussed above, the Board of Directors also called, again for 12 September 2012, the Ordinary Shareholders’ Meeting to appoint a member of the Board of Directors and resolve any associated and consequent resolutions.

It became necessary to appoint a new director following the resignation for personal reasons of the director Cristiana Coppola.

Rome, 27 July 2012