HOCHTIEF is geared to sustainable, profitable growth. A key part in this growth strategy is played by our intensive and continuously expanding activities in the concessions and operation business. These activities include the airport and public-private partnership (PPP) segments served by the HOCHTIEF Concessions division.

Recognizing the growing importance of the concessions business to HOCHTIEF, we created a new HOCHTIEF Concessions division in the first quarter of 2008. The division is presided over by HOCHTIEF Concessions GmbH and contains HOCHTIEF AirPort GmbH and HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions GmbH. It thus brings together our activities in the airports, toll roads, public buildings and renewable energies segments. The new structure allows closer cooperation and the reaping of synergies in market development, business planning, special operator responsibilities and other technical areas – making us a strong partner for our clients.

A number of factors stand out to differentiate us from international competitors in the concessions business:

• The expertise and innovative strength we have shown time and again in designing, financing, building and operating complex projects, which means we can optimize and provide services at every stage of the project life cycle
• Our experience with concessions and operation projects worldwide
• Our closely linked international network and cross-border transfer of know-how, which enable us to reap synergies
• Our excellent reputation as one of the world's leading construction services providers.

HOCHTIEF became established in this dynamic market as early as the mid-1990s with the award in Athens of the world's first BOOT concession for an airport, secured among other things by virtue of our airport construction expertise. We have since added interests in Budapest, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Sydney and Tirana airports. This portfolio of attractive airports with strong prospects for the future makes us one of the world's largest private and independent airport investors and managers. HOCHTIEF AirPort only enters into long-term arrangements with the goal of improving an airport's operating efficiency and passenger comfort. Total passenger numbers served across our airport portfolio swelled to some 90 million in fiscal 2008.

We continually build on our airport expertise, creating substantial added value for the airports operated by HOCHTIEF. As an investor, we aim to develop our airport holdings into profitable transportation and commerce hubs that are ready for the challenges of the future. Our many years' experience in operating and managing airports of various sizes along with our financing expertise and potential are key elements in meeting this goal. The airports in the HOCHTIEF portfolio are also integrated into a close network, yielding synergies and fostering direct exchange of experience.

Thanks to strong performance in the first six months of the year, worldwide passenger numbers remained almost unchanged in 2008. At HOCHTIEF's airport holdings, these numbers even increased by 1.5 percent. However, the weakening economy also caused growth to slow in this segment. Nevertheless, airports continue to be a dependable long-term choice for institutional investors seeking strong returns with relatively little volatility.

HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions serves the concessions market covering toll roads/transportation and public buildings/social infrastructure as well as the renewable energy segment. The company supplemented its existing European and South American activities in 2008 by also expanding into North America. We aim to take a slice of the rapidly growing US infrastructure business together with our American subsidiaries Turner and Flatiron. HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions' end-to-end portfolio of capabilities comprising design, financing, construction and operation allows it to provide services along the full project life cycle while optimizing project cash flows. This shrinks the necessary capital and operating outlay, at the same time enabling projects to be completed faster and more cost-effectively. As with the airport holdings, our PPP projects generate income from dividends, interest from shareholder loans as well as transaction and management fees, plus any gains on market placement or disposals of ownership stakes.

HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions' portfolio of toll road contracts comprises eight projects with a total investment volume in excess of EUR 5 billion. In all, the company is responsible for nearly 800 kilometers of toll road. Some 600 kilometers are accounted for by just two Greek PPP road projects – Maliakos-Kleidi and Elefsina-Patras-Tsakona – on which HOCHTIEF reached financial close in 2008. This also brought the concession contract for the two projects into effect. Construction, operation and toll charging promptly started as a result. The 365-kilometer Elefsina-Patras-Tsakona link is one of Europe's biggest contemporary infrastructure projects.

At the end of fiscal 2008, a further indirect 3.75 percent stake in the Vespucio Norte Express (VNE) project in Chile was sold to investor M.M. Warburg & Co. for a purchase price of EUR 25.3 million. HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions has now reduced its interest in the VNE toll highway in two stages from 45.45 percent to 29.2 percent. The sale formed part of our active management of the concessions portfolio and reaffirmed our portfolio valuation.