RNS Number:5513I
Compagnie de Saint-Gobain
06 September 2006




press release

                                                               September 4, 2006


                Saint-Gobain's Packaging Sector expands in Chile


Saint-Gobain's Packaging Sector has just gained control of BO Glass Containers
SA, which has begun construction of a wine bottle plant in Rosario, located in a
winegrowing region south of Santiago (Chile). Saint-Gobain acquired 51 percent
of the company through a capital increase, with the historic shareholders led by
Juan Obach and Felix Bacigalupo retaining the remaining 49 percent. BO Glass
Containers SA will now change its name to Saint-Gobain Envases SA.


This plant will have one furnace and two production lines specialized in the
manufacturing of wine bottles in clear, green and dead-leaf glass.


With this acquisition, Saint-Gobain will become the second largest wine bottle
manufacturer in Chile. It will also speed up its growth in one of the world's
most dynamic wine industries. This new position will also enable Saint-Gobain,
the leading European and the world's second largest packaging glass
manufacturer, to work apace with the Chilean wine industry and its remarkable
growth, especially on the export market.


This operation dovetails with the Packaging Sector's growth strategy in emerging
countries. It will boost the Sector's presence in Latin America where it already
has five manufacturing facilities in Brazil, and another plant with two furnaces
in Mendoza (Argentina).


Saint-Gobain is already active in Chile, in association with Juan Obach and
Felix Bacigalupo, in Lirquen, the country's only manufacturer of flat glass. It
also has a minority interest in Volcan, a leading company in the plaster,
plasterboard and insulation products markets.


With more than 20,000 employees globally (71 manufacturing plants in Europe,
North and South America, and in China), Saint-Gobain's Packaging Sector is the
leader in all its business areas:


*  The manufacture of bottles and jars for the food and beverage industries,

*  The manufacture of bottles for the fragrance, cosmetic and pharmaceutical 
   industries,

*  Packaging added value using the most sophisticated decoration techniques.


In 2005, the Sector reported sales of 4 billion euros, that is, 10 percent of
Saint-Gobain's consolidated sales.


                         Investor Relations Department


Mrs Florence TRIOU-TEIXEIRA        Tel.: +33 1 47 62 45 19

Mr Alexandre ETUY                  Tel.: +33 1 47 62 37 15

                                   Fax.: +33 1 47 62 50 62



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            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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