CertainTeed Insulation to Expand Canadian Presence with Purchase of Ottawa Fibre

(Valley Forge, PA) - Saint-Gobain, through its subsidiary, CertainTeed Insulation Canada, Inc., today announced the signing of an agreement to purchase Canadian fibre glass insulation manufacturer Ottawa Fibre, under the agreement, CertainTeed Insulation will acquire all of the operating assets of Ottawa Fibre for approximately CAN$41 million, plus assume the Fund's adjusted debt.

The sale is expected to be finalized in early January 2009 following unit-holder and regulatory approvals.

The acquisition includes fibre glass insulation manufacturing facilities in Ottawa and Tillsonburg, Ontario and Redcliff, Alberta, as well as a ceiling tile plant in Ottawa, giving the company a consistent, domestically-produced source of CertainTeed insulation products for Canadian customers.

CertainTeed Gypsum already has a well-established presence in Canada, where it is the leader for wallboard and finishing products.

Editor's Notes:

Saint-Gobain is the world's largest building materials company, as well as a leading manufacturer of high-performance materials and glass containers. The Group employs some 212,000 people worldwide and recorded sales of CAN43.4 billion in 2007.

CertainTeed is Saint-Gobain's largest North American subsidiary. Through innovation and creative product design, CertainTeed has helped shape the building products industry for more than 100 years. Founded in 1904 as General Roofing Company, the firm made its slogan.

Today, CertainTeed is North America's leading brand of exterior and interior building products, including roofing, siding, windows, fence, decking, railing, trim, foundations, pipe, insulation, gypsum, ceilings and access covers.

Headquartered in Valley Forge, PA, CertainTeed and its affiliates have more than 7,000 employees and more than 70 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and Canada. In 2007 the group had total sales of more than $3 billion. www.certainteed.com

Ottawa Fibre is a manufacturer and distributor of a broad range of fibre glass insulation products, including fibre glass ceiling tiles, designed for thermal and acoustical applications and destined for the Canadian, U.S. and international residential and non-residential/industrial markets. The company employs 240 people and has annual sales of approximately $73m. Additional information is available at www.sedar.com or the company's website at www.ofigroup.com.