Impax-FTSE License ET50 Index to Major US Pension Fund

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Impax Asset Management Ltd ("Impax"), a leading asset manager dedicated to the environmental markets sectors and FTSE group ("FTSE"), the global index company, have licensed the FTSE Environmental Technology 50 Index, formerly the Impax ET50, to one of the US's largest public pension plans, the New York State Common Retirement Fund (NYSCRF).

The move will see NYSCRF benchmark $100 million to the index as part of its clean tech allocation.

The license follows Impax and FTSE's recent launch of the world's first Environmental Markets Classification System and the expansion of the FTSE Environmental Opportunities Index Series. All indices, managed by Impax and FTSE, are comprised of companies derived from a database managed by Impax.

Impax developed the ET50 Index - originally called the 'Impax ET50 Index' - in 1999 as a method of measuring the performance of companies whose core business is the development and operation of environmental technologies (which include alternative energy, water and pollution control, and waste and resource management). The index is made up of the largest fifty "pure-play" environmental technology companies by market capitalisation worldwide.

In late 2007, Impax handed calculation of the index over to FTSE because of the Group's proven indexing expertise and its commitment to providing investors with a set of responsible investment tools.

Ian Simm, Chief Executive of Impax, said: "The license of the FTSE ET50 to the New York State Common Retirement Fund shows the continued success of the partnership combining FTSE's index expertise and Impax's in-depth sector knowledge."

"It also provides further evidence that institutional investors recognize that the environmental sector should continue to deliver significant outperformance over global equity markets."

The $100 million allocation will be managed internally by NYSCRF's in-house asset management team. NYSCRF is the third largest United States retirement plan sponsor with $109.9 billion in total assets as of May 29, 2009.

About Impax Group plc:
Impax Asset Management is a wholly owned subsidiary of Impax Group plc. Impax Group plc ("Impax") is quoted on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange and was founded in 1994 as a specialist finance house focusing on the markets for cleaner or more efficient delivery of basic services of energy, water and waste.

Impax's dedicated team of professionals, with many years of experience in the financial and environmental sectors, is ideally placed to understand and take advantage of the investment opportunities arising from the fast growing environmental markets. Impax Asset Management manages over US$1.8 billion of assets for institutional and private investors, across a range of listed and private equity funds.

For further information please visit: www.impax.co.uk