Corporate Giving and Sponsorship

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Social Commitment and Local Involvement

The French Year in Brazil offers an opportunity to highlight the strength of the ties between our two countries, to remind everyone of Brazils importance for the Group, and to let people know about our commitment and sponsorship. In every country where we operate, GDF SUEZ and our subsidiaries actively engage in grassroots corporate giving and sponsorship, reflecting our values. Whether its social initiatives, environmental projects, cultural philanthropy or sports-related sponsorship, the Group always aims to act in a socially responsible manner as a corporate citizen actively involved in the life of local communities. Brazil is a perfect example of this commitment, especially since the Group, which is a major energy producer in the country, has been assigned large infrastructure projects that significantly effect the development of local areas and their populations. These major projects are systematically accompanied by sustainable development initiatives carried out in close collaboration with local associations. In the environmental arena, water treatment activities undertaken by the Group also involve local partnerships, philanthropy and social commitments. Beyond one-off activities, the Group has a policy of remaining deeply involved over the long term, as is shown by our long-standing projects. This policy is guided by strict ethical codes of conduct and transparency, with a constant eye toward excellence, balance, and sustainable development. As such, the Groups corporate giving and sponsorship policy exemplifies in practical terms the values of GDF SUEZ : Drive, Commitment, Daring, and Cohesion. We believe that a company is defined not just by its industrial objectives, types of business and history, but first and foremost by its values and ability to assume its responsibilities to the community.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Grard Mestrallet

AT LEFT :

Yves Saint Laurent Retrospective (May, Banco do Brasil Cultural Center, Rio de Janeiro)
AT RIGHT :

Photo by French artist JR on stairway in the Favela Morro da Providencia (April, Rio de Janeiro)

2009, YEAR OF FRANCE IN BRAZIL

Carrying on the legacy of the 2005 French Year in Brazil, which was a resounding success, the 2009 French Year in Brazil offers France the opportunity to showcase its many and varied contributions in the various regions of Brazil.
After supporting the Year of Brazil in France, GDF SUEZ is now a partner of the Year of France in Brazil. It was in 2006 that the presidents of France and of Brazil decided to organize the Year of France in Brazil. It called for the involvement of government officials, the business world, cultural professionals, artists, intellectuals, researchers, and the media, inviting the people of both countries to become more familiar with each other and to work together.

Sponsors Committee
A sponsors committee was established to support the some 600 projects planned for the Year of France in Brazil. The commission brings together 17 French companies that are well established in Brazil: GDF SUEZ, Accor, Air France, Areva, CNP Assurances, Dassault, DCNS, EADS, Alstom, Lafarge, PSA Peugeot Citron, Renault, SaintGobain, Safran, Thals, Vallourec, and the France-Brazil Chamber of Commerce. This committee created a project support fund, a common pot out of which funding was allocated by joint decision of the sponsors and the French Trade Mission.

Marianne, sans-culottes, French flags For the 2009 Carnival, the Grande Rio samba school chose the French Republic as the theme for its float.

France honoured at Rio carnival

GDF SUEZ Brazil and Tractebel Energia were among the French companies sponsoring Grande Rio, a Samba school that selected the theme of France for the Year of France in Brazil. In addition to this support, the show proposed by the school for the Rio Carnival in February 2009 was backed by close collaboration with the city of Nice (where the largest French carnival takes place). Dancers from the Moulin Rouge even joined those from Grande Rio