Joint Venture with Building Energy S.p.A. to Provide ABM's Clients Fully Integrated Renewable Services

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ABM (NYSE:ABM), a leading provider of facility solutions, today announced a joint venture between ABM Government Services and Building Energy — an Italian-based independent power producer — to provide solar energy services to large-scale commercial and utility-scale solar power markets. The venture will bring the significant experience and financial capabilities of two of the energy industry's leaders to ABM's existing 20,000+ clients. ABM's energy businesses and Building Energy have collectively generated over $1 Billion in energy services revenue over the last five years.

The partnership will enable ABM to build on its reputation as one of the country's leading energy service companies (ESCO), specializing in design, installation, operations and maintenance (O&M), and unique financial solutions for its varied client base. It will also enhance ABM's Bundled Energy Solutions (BES) program, which has been designed as a financial solution to meet clients' technical facility needs and sustainability goals. For ABM, the goal is to drive costs out of a client's operating budget to allow savings to be reallocated to fund mission critical facility needs. Through the joint venture, ABM expects to become one of the largest ESCO's in the country, offering a full suite of renewable and energy efficiency services.

Building Energy S.p.A. is a world-class developer, EPC contractor and operator of renewable energy power plants. Building Energy was awarded the 2012 European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Project Finance "Best Sustainability Deal of the Year" award for its work developing, designing and building an 81 MW project in Kathu, South Africa. Building Energy, much like ABM, focuses on delivering a comprehensive business model for clients that fully integrates financing, EPC, O&M and asset management services throughout the solar value chain. Also similar to ABM, Building Energy self-performs the majority of its work.

"We have spent considerable effort building our energy services offering specifically around our clients' needs, and we believe expanding our solar and distributed energy capabilities is a critical next step towards providing a comprehensive energy solution," said Ted O'Shea, who will lead ABM's renewables group. "We wanted to make sure that as we took this next step, we did so with a reputable partner with ample experience and expertise in the solar market. Building Energy's service offerings are highly complementary to ABM's, and they absolutely fit the bill as a partner that will continue to build maximum value for our clients moving forward."

Under the joint venture, ABM clients will have the advantage of working with two companies with significant energy services experience as ABM and Building Energy have collectively installed over 250 MWs of solar EPC, along with currently operating and maintaining over 200 MWs of solar facilities in five countries. Additionally, both ABM and Building Energy have strong financial capabilities and acumen, with both companies having successfully created financial strategies to help clients spend their energy dollars more wisely.

"Through the development of a diversified pipeline of utility-scale projects in the international markets where renewable energy sources have the greatest potential, we have established a solid track-record of solar power plants," said Fabrizio Zago, CEO of Building Energy. "Our business model is based on the direct management of the entire life-cycle of renewable power systems, from development and financial planning to construction and maintenance, guaranteeing our partners and clients the highest level of expertise and reliability.

"The joint venture with ABM is an important milestone for our company in proposing this business model in the US, which is a market that offers strong growth potential to players able to combine financial strength with EPC and O&M expertise."

ABOUT ABM

ABM (NYSE: ABM) is a leading provider of facility solutions with revenues exceeding $4 billion and 100,000 employees in over 350 offices deployed throughout the United States and various international locations. ABM's comprehensive capabilities include facilities engineering, commercial cleaning, energy solutions, HVAC, electrical, landscaping, parking and security, provided through stand-alone or integrated solutions. ABM provides custom facility solutions in urban, suburban and rural areas to properties of all sizes — from schools and hospitals to the largest and most complex facilities, such as manufacturing plants and major airports. ABM Industries Incorporated, which operates through its subsidiaries, was founded in 1909. For more information, visit www.abm.com.

ABOUT BUILDING ENERGY

Building Energy is an independent producer of energy from renewable sources. Its development pipeline includes projects with a total capacity of around 800 MW in Italy, South Africa, USA, Dominican Republic, Serbia and Romania. In South Africa, Building Energy won the contract for the biggest photovoltaic project on the African continent - 81 MW in Kathu - in the first round of the REIPP, the South African government's incentive program for the production of renewable energy. The power station is currently under construction and is expected to be in operation by August 2014.

In the USA, Building Energy recently announced a partnership agreement with Optimum Renewables for the development of wind farms in Iowa with a total capacity of around 50 MW. For more information, visit buildingenergy.it.

ABM
Media: Chas Strong
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Source: ABM Industries

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