Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, The Carlyle Group and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity to Acquire Hertz from Ford Motor Company for $15 Billion

NEW YORK, Sept. 13 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/InfoQuest

New Owners See Significant Growth Opportunities

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Inc. (CD&R), The Carlyle Group (Carlyle) and

Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity (MLGPE), announced today that they have

reached a definitive agreement with Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) to acquire The

Hertz Corporation (Hertz), the world's largest vehicle rental organization, in

a transaction valued at $15 billion. George W. Tamke, a CD&R Operating Partner,

will serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors. The transaction is subject to

normal regulatory approvals and is expected to close by year end.

Mr. Tamke said, "The company's underlying strengths -- an exceptional

global brand, premium pricing supported by superior customer service and a

history of industry innovation -- form a strong platform on which to pursue

further growth initiatives."

Gregory S. Ledford, Carlyle Managing Director, said, "We welcome the

opportunity to work with this storied company, the number one brand in the

global auto rental industry. In addition, we are delighted to partner with the

company's management team and employees to support the next phase of Hertz's

growth."

"We have been looking at Hertz for more than three years and believe it

fits squarely within our investment strategy -- a complex corporate

divestiture of a market leading business with a powerful franchise and

opportunities for profitable growth," said David H. Wasserman, the partner who

led the transaction negotiations for CD&R.

"We look forward to working with our equity partners and Hertz management

for the company's continued success," said Nathan C. Thorne, president of

MLGPE.

Craig R. Koch, Hertz Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, "We are

pleased to be partnering with an outstanding group of financial and operating

investors who understand our business and are committed to supporting our

continued growth, success and value creation."

Hertz is the leader in the $25+ billion annual sales global car rental

market with strong positions in the high-margin corporate and leisure sectors,

where service is most highly valued. Hertz has more than $7 billion in annual

revenue and has been consistently profitable in recent years. Founded in 1918,

the company has 7,000 locations in the U.S. and 150 foreign countries.

The investor group was advised by Deutsche Bank AG, Lehman Brothers Inc.

and Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. Debevoise & Plimpton LLP provided legal

counsel.

About Clayton, Dubilier & Rice

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Inc. is a leading private equity investment firm

that has earned consistent, superior investment returns using an integrated operational

and financial approach to building and growing portfolio businesses.

Since its founding in 1978, CD&R has managed the investment of over $5.5

billion in 37 businesses -- mostly subsidiaries or divisions of large multi-

business corporations -- representing a broad range of industries with an

aggregate transaction value in excess of $25 billion and revenues of

approximately $40 billion.

Regarding Mr. Tamke's background, he served as Chairman of Kinko's, an

investment that CD&R sold to FedEx in February 2004 and currently serves as

Chairman of Culligan International, a leading global provider of water

treatment products and services, which a CD&R-managed fund acquired in

September of 2004. Before joining CD&R in 2000, Mr. Tamke was co-CEO of

Emerson Electric. The firm has offices in New York and London and manages

approximately $8 billion of capital. For more information about CD&R, visit

http://www.cdr-inc.com.

About Carlyle

The Carlyle Group is a global private equity firm with $31 billion under

management. Carlyle invests in buyouts, venture capital, real estate and

leveraged finance in Asia, Europe and North America, focusing on aerospace &

defense, automotive & transportation, consumer & retail, energy & power,

healthcare, industrial, technology & business services and telecommunications

& media. Since 1987, the firm has invested $14.3 billion of equity in 414

transactions for a total purchase price of $49.5 billion. The Carlyle Group

employs more than 600 people in 13 countries. In the aggregate, Carlyle

portfolio companies have more than $30 billion in revenue and employ more than

131,000 people around the world. Visit http://www.carlyle.com for additional

information.

About Merrill Lynch

Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity is the private equity arm of Merrill

Lynch & Co., Inc.

Merrill Lynch is one of the world's leading financial management and

advisory companies with offices in 36 countries and total client assets of

approximately $1.6 trillion. As an investment bank, it is a leading global

underwriter of debt and equity securities and strategic advisor to

corporations, governments, institutions and individuals worldwide. Through

Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, the company is one of the world's largest

managers of financial assets. Firm wide, assets under management total $478

billion. For more information on Merrill Lynch, please visit

http://www.ml.com.

SOURCE: Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Inc.

CONTACT: Clayton, Dubilier & Rice: Tom Franco, +1-212-232-2220,

[email protected]; Chris Tofalli, +1-212-232-2226,

[email protected]

The Carlyle Group: Chris Ullman, +1-202-729-5450,

[email protected]

Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity: Terez Hanhan, +1-212-449-2004,

[email protected] /

Web site: http://www.cdr-inc.com

http://www.carlyle.com

http://www.ml.com /

--Distributed by AsiaNet (www.asianetnews.net)--

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, The Carlyle Group and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity to Acquire Hertz from Ford Motor Company for $15 Billion

Lynch & Co., Inc.

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