Paris, July 19, 2006 - Gaz de France finalized a transaction to sell the Group's 17.5 per cent stake in the Kazakh Joint Venture Company KazGerMunai LLP (KGM) to Kazakh national oil company KazMunaiGas JSC, for an amount of 350 million US dollars.

This transaction is part of a larger joint sale, Gaz de France and co-shareholders RWE Dea and International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, together selling 50 per cent of KGM to KazMunaiGas JSC for a total consideration of 1 billion USD, in line with market conditions.

As a result, the two shareholders of KGM are now KazMunaiGas JSC and PetroKazakhstan Kumkol Resources, a wholly-owned subsidiary of PetroKazakhstan Inc.

KGM holds three production licenses and has successfully developed the Akshabulak and Nuraly oil fields located in the Kyzyl-Orda region, in the centre of Kazakhstan. In 2005, KGM produced 2 million tons of crude oil.

Gaz de France's stake in KGM was held through its wholly-owned German subsidiary EEG-Erdgas Erdöl GmbH. EEG was one of the founding companies which established the joint venture in 1993. In cooperation with RWE Dea, EEG has contributed significantly to the successful development and operation of KGM.

GAZ DE FRANCE is a major energy player in Europe. The leading European natural gas supplier, the Group has around 53,000 employees, recorded net sales of €22.4 billion and net income of €1.743 billion in 2005.  Gaz de France serves 13.8 million customers, including 11.1 million in France.  Listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since July 2005, the Group joined the CAC 40 share index and the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 in September 2005.

Press contact :                                                          Investor Relations contact :

Sabine Wacquez                                                        Frédéric Dervieux

Tel : +33 1 47 54 24 43                                               Tel : +33 1 47 54 28 66

E-mail : sabine.wacquez@gazdefrance.com                 E-mail : GDF-IR-TEAM@gazdefrance.com

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