ABOUT PRAXAIR: (Please refer www.praxair.co.

in)
With 27,000 employees and operations in more than 30 countries, Praxair is focused on helping our customers become more profitable, efficient and environmentally friendly. With 2008 sales of $10.8 billion, Praxair, Inc. (NYSE:PX) is a global, Fortune 300 company that supplies atmospheric, process and specialty gases, high-performance coatings, and related services and technologies to a wide diversity of customers. Praxair's primary products are: atmospheric gases -- oxygen, nitrogen, argon and rare gases (produced when air is purified, compressed, cooled, distilled and condensed), and process & specialty gases -- carbon dioxide, helium, hydrogen, semiconductor process gases, and acetylene (produced as by-products of chemical production or recovered from natural gas). The company also designs, engineers and constructs cryogenic and non-cryogenic supply systems. Praxair Surface Technologies is a subsidiary that applies metallic and ceramic coatings and powders to metal surfaces in order to resist wear, high temperatures and corrosion. Praxair adopted its name in 1992, from the Greek word "praxis", or practical application, and "air", our primary raw material. The company was originally founded in 1907 when it was the first company in North America to commercialize cryogenically separated oxygen. Over the century of its existence, Praxair has led in the development of processes and technologies that have revolutionized the industrial gases industry. The company introduced the first distribution system for liquid gas in 1917, and developed on-site gas supply by the end of WWII. In the 1960s, Praxair introduced non-cryogenic means of air separation, and since then has continued to introduce innovative applications technologies for various industries. The company holds almost 3,000 patents. Praxair serves a wide range of industries: aerospace, food and beverages, healthcare, semiconductors, chemicals, refining, oil and gas production, primary metals and metal fabrication, as well as other areas of general industry.

ABOUT PRAXAIR INDIA: (Please refer www.praxair.co.in)

Praxair began business operations in India in 1995 through a joint venture with Jindal Steel Works and built one of the largest air separation plants in the world in Bellary, Karnataka. In April 1996, Praxair India Pvt. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Praxair Inc., was formed, with its headquarters in Bangalore. Today, Praxair India is the leading industrial gases supplier in India, with more than 35 operating locations, a national distribution network, and an impressive list of clients. Praxair further consolidated its presence in India with major on-site plants at Hospet, Sriperembudur, Haldia, Jamshedpur and Durgapur making the total combined industrial gas production capacity of more than 10000 tons per day. Strategically located cylinder bottling units across the country and a strong fleet of cryogenic bulk tankers enables Praxair to be a full line gas supplier in the country. Praxair provides a reliable, consistent, supply of industrial gases via advanced air separation

plants and delivery systems that are both cost-effective and safe. Whether providing oxygen for steel-making, hydrogen for petrochemical production, argon for metal fabrication, carbon dioxide for food and beverage, or helium for medical imaging, Praxair is helping India's leading companies improve their competitive position in the marketplace. Besides catering to the atmospheric gas requirements in various industries, Praxair also has other active lines of business such as specialty gases, carbon dioxide, health care, surface technologies and hard goods. Praxair India is a locally managed company, led by an Indian managing director, Mr. Gajanan Nabar.