Press Releases

TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 10/14/08 -- OMERS, one of Canada's largest pension funds with a track record of exceptional performance, is weathering the current credit crisis and is taking its secret of success global. OMERS now has a presence in London UK.

To accelerate its expansion into private market investments and to take the next step in establishing a global footprint, a new London office has been established at 6 New Street Square under the OMERS Worldwide brand.

The OMERS pension fund has been ranked in the top quartile of Canadian pension funds in each of the last three years driven by solid returns in private market investments. The fund ended 2007 with net investment assets of C$52 billion.

"We are weathering the current market crisis largely because we were an early believer in shifting large amounts of capital from public to private markets," explained OMERS President and CEO, Michael Nobrega. "Our substantial private market assets have gone a long way toward partially offsetting the volatility and negative performance of public securities."

At December 31, 2007 OMERS had 30% of its net investment assets in real estate, private equity and infrastructure, compared with the 9% average invested in alternative assets by large North American and European pension funds. "Our long term goal is to invest 42.5% of our net investment assets in private markets on a global basis," Mr. Nobrega said.

OMERS Worldwide will leverage the depth and breadth of OMERS active asset management expertise. "Pension funds and sovereign wealth funds that share our prudent and responsible investment philosophy want access to our management teams and assets," he continued. "We want access to large-scale opportunities and co-investment capital around the world. Locating in London expedites the process and enables us to dip into the local talent pool for professionals with global vision."

OMERS has $5 billion of capital interests in real estate and infrastructure assets in the United Kingdom. These investments have an enterprise value exceeding $10 billion and include Associated British Ports, Scotia Gas Networks, and the Watermark Place office complex being developed in London.

"Our real estate and infrastructure professionals are in touch with several billions of dollars of new investments that we cannot prudently afford on our own," Mr. Nobrega said. "We need agreements with co-investors who want what we want - - large-scale assets that generate hundreds of millions of dollars of reliable cash flow annually for many years to come."

The London office will have a 20 member team, including OMERS investment professionals in real estate, infrastructure, private equity and capital markets. As relationships are formed and new investment opportunities are discovered, OMERS Worldwide will open offices in other global regions.

OMERS has four investment arms under the OMERS Worldwide banner:

- Oxford Properties Group, a 40-year-old company that oversees and manages $16 billion of real estate for OMERS and on behalf of its co-owners and investment partners;

- Borealis Infrastructure, a 10-year-old pioneer that has developed with other investors a portfolio of infrastructure assets with an enterprise value of over $25 billion, including a nuclear power plant, marine ports, a satellite company, oil and gas pipelines and health-care diagnostic services;

- OMERS Private Equity, managing $3.6 billion of assets in global funds as well as direct interests in private companies; and

- OMERS Capital Markets with exposure of $37 billion to fixed income and equity investments in financial markets around the world.

OMERS is one of Canada's largest pension plans, with investments in a wide range of companies and assets around the world. OMERS provides retirement benefits to 380,000 members on behalf of over 900 different employers in the province of Ontario, Canada.

Learn more about OMERS and OMERS Worldwide at www.omers.com.

(All figures as of December 31, 2007.)

Contacts:
OMERS
Janice Wong
Manager, Corporate Communications
(416) 350-6747
Email: jwong@omers.com
Website: www.omers.com

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Oct. 14, 2008) - OMERS, one of Canada's largest pension funds with a track record of exceptional performance, is weathering the current credit crisis and is taking its secret of success global. OMERS now has a presence in London UK.

To accelerate its expansion into private market investments and to take the next step in establishing a global footprint, a new London office has been established at 6 New Street Square under the OMERS Worldwide brand.

The OMERS pension fund has been ranked in the top quartile of Canadian pension funds in each of the last three years driven by solid returns in private market investments. The fund ended 2007 with net investment assets of C$52 billion.

"We are weathering the current market crisis largely because we were an early believer in shifting large amounts of capital from public to private markets," explained OMERS President and CEO, Michael Nobrega. "Our substantial private market assets have gone a long way toward partially offsetting the volatility and negative performance of public securities."

At December 31, 2007 OMERS had 30% of its net investment assets in real estate, private equity and infrastructure, compared with the 9% average invested in alternative assets by large North American and European pension funds. "Our long term goal is to invest 42.5% of our net investment assets in private markets on a global basis," Mr. Nobrega said.

OMERS Worldwide will leverage the depth and breadth of OMERS active asset management expertise. "Pension funds and sovereign wealth funds that share our prudent and responsible investment philosophy want access to our management teams and assets," he continued. "We want access to large-scale opportunities and co-investment capital around the world. Locating in London expedites the process and enables us to dip into the local talent pool for professionals with global vision."

OMERS has $5 billion of capital interests in real estate and infrastructure assets in the United Kingdom. These investments have an enterprise value exceeding $10 billion and include Associated British Ports, Scotia Gas Networks, and the Watermark Place office complex being developed in London.

"Our real estate and infrastructure professionals are in touch with several billions of dollars of new investments that we cannot prudently afford on our own," Mr. Nobrega said. "We need agreements with co-investors who want what we want - - large-scale assets that generate hundreds of millions of dollars of reliable cash flow annually for many years to come."

The London office will have a 20 member team, including OMERS investment professionals in real estate, infrastructure, private equity and capital markets. As relationships are formed and new investment opportunities are discovered, OMERS Worldwide will open offices in other global regions.

OMERS has four investment arms under the OMERS Worldwide banner:

- Oxford Properties Group, a 40-year-old company that oversees and manages $16 billion of real estate for OMERS and on behalf of its co-owners and investment partners;

- Borealis Infrastructure, a 10-year-old pioneer that has developed with other investors a portfolio of infrastructure assets with an enterprise value of over $25 billion, including a nuclear power plant, marine ports, a satellite company, oil and gas pipelines and health-care diagnostic services;

- OMERS Private Equity, managing $3.6 billion of assets in global funds as well as direct interests in private companies; and

- OMERS Capital Markets with exposure of $37 billion to fixed income and equity investments in financial markets around the world.

OMERS is one of Canada's largest pension plans, with investments in a wide range of companies and assets around the world. OMERS provides retirement benefits to 380,000 members on behalf of over 900 different employers in the province of Ontario, Canada.

Learn more about OMERS and OMERS Worldwide at www.omers.com.

(All figures as of December 31, 2007.)

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
        OMERS
        Janice Wong
        Manager, Corporate Communications
        (416) 350-6747
        Email: jwong@omers.com
        Website: www.omers.com

Source: Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Fixed operators need to come up with strategies for dealing with a rapid and invasive expansion of mobile broadband into their core growth area, consumer broadband, according to a new report, Mobile broadband: another substitution threat for fixed operators?, published by Analysys Mason, the premier advisers on telecoms, IT and digital media.

The report forecasts that by 2013, 47% of European broadband subscriptions will use mobile networks and nearly a quarter of broadband-equipped sites will use mobile-only. The speed of take-up of broadband via mobile USB modems has surprised many in the fixed broadband business - and, indeed, the mobile business - and the early indications are that consumers in Europe are using mobile broadband as a substitute for fixed. DSL subscriber net additions are drying up, and headline prices for mobile broadband are frequently lower than those for DSL.

Nearly half of fixed broadband users currently have a usage profile that is no higher than the average usage on mobile broadband, making the size of the addressable market for mobile broadband as a substitutive consumer proposition enormous.

Mobile broadband is an opportunity that MNOs cannot afford to miss, but they face some difficulties in keeping the momentum going. While increasing the capacity of networks is essential to avoid reductions in service quality, MNOs need to dissociate rises in network costs from the exponential increases in bandwidth demands that have already been seen. This will involve access network upgrades, but also, crucially, the transformation of legacy backhaul to an aggregated IP infrastructure.

"In the shorter term, MNOs need to manage customer traffic volumes at a retail level, selling to the kind of customers who will not put excessive pressure on the networks," says Matt Hatton, Principal Analyst specialising in mobile broadband at Analysys Mason. "In this respect, MNOs can pull many levers, including volume-based caps, pay-as-you-go charging and fixed-mobile bundles."

"Fixed operators are currently underestimating the scale of the threat of mobile broadband", says the report's main author Rupert Wood, who argues that a repeat of fixed-mobile voice substitution will play out.

"Fixed operators, forced to invest heavily to differentiate their version of broadband from mobile, will pack more speed and features into their DSL services, but could end up with a product that, although it is better value for money, ultimately loses out to mobile because it is less flexible and involves substantially higher monthly costs for the end user."

However, there are significant new opportunities for fixed operators.

"Instead of concentrating on expensive retail differentiation," Wood says, "fixed operators should focus more on the rapidly expanding wholesale opportunities to provide the new backhaul and platform infrastructure that mobile broadband providers urgently need. Fixed and mobile operators will need to learn to co-habit as well as to compete."

    This report is available to purchase online
http://store.analysysmason.com for GBP1900 (EUR2400).

To request a press summary please telephone Gina Ghensi +44 (0)1223 460600 or email press@analysysmason.com.

Source: Analysys Mason

CORONA DEL MAR, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The Foundation to Eradicate Duchenne (FED), the CureDuchenne Foundation, AVI BioPharma and Prosensa will host an Exon Skipping Conference for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy from October 14 -17, 2008 at the Banbury Center of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY. Participants are being drawn from a wide area of research, from chemistry to regulatory authorities, to critically review progress on oligonucleotides as therapeutic agents for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

Over the past years, there have been advances in nucleotide chemistry that have led to oligonucleotides (exon skipping compounds) that retain sequence-specific anti-sense activity, while showing little or no protein binding or associated off-target effects. Additional developments in chemistry have improved intracellular delivery, allowing more potent small molecules showing biochemical efficacy in a larger variety of tissues and cells. Recent studies suggest that many hurdles previously inhibiting movement of anti-sense drugs into clinics and standard of care have now been overcome.

The goal is to end the meeting with a more clear understanding of the hurdles that remain in using oligonucleotides as therapeutic agents and to highlight research strategies that are likely to produce positive outcomes.

This conference is being organized by Adrian Krainer, Ph.D., Professor, Banbury Center of Cold Harbor Laboratory; Eric Hoffman,Ph.D, Center Director, Center for Genetic Medicine Research, Children's National Medical Center; and Terence A. Partridge, Ph.D., Principal Investigator, Children's Research Institute, Center for Genetic Medicine Research, Children's National Medical Center

    Participation is by invitation only.

    About Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD)

One in every 3,500 boys worldwide is afflicted with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. They will be in wheel chairs by 12 and, historically, most have not survived their teenage years. Duchenne knows no boundaries and crosses all cultures and races. It can happen in any family. There currently is no cure, but for the first time, there are promising therapies on the horizon.

About The Foundation to Eradicate Duchenne (FED)

The Foundation to Eradicate Duchenne was established by Dana and Joel Wood of Alexandria, Virginia. Their son James Wood was diagnosed in May 2000 with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The Woods are both lobbyists in Washington, D.C., and have devoted much of their time and energies to this cause, working with others to achieve millions of dollars in federal earmarks for Duchenne research and a significant increase in the attention devoted to Duchenne at the National Institutes of Health. For more information on FED, please visit www.duchennemd.org.

About CureDuchenne

CureDuchenne is a non-profit organization founded in 2003 by Debra and Paul Miller, parents of a Duchenne boy. CureDuchenne's Vision is its name...to cure Duchenne muscular dystrophy. CureDuchenne aggressively seeks the most promising, leading edge research breakthroughs and expedites them to the clinical trial process. The ultimate goal...give the boys that have Duchenne now a chance to live a normal life by expediting the availability of treatments/therapies and or a cure that can give quality of life to Duchenne boys, much like insulin does for diabetics. For more information about CureDuchenne, please visit www.cureduchenne.org email debra@cureduchenne.org.

About Prosensa

Prosensa is a Dutch biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of RNA based therapeutics targeting diseases with unmet medical needs, in particular neuromuscular disorders. Prosensa's drug development is based upon a unique and proprietary technology platform involving 'exon skipping', enabling correction of mutated RNA. This ability to modulate genes selectively through RNA-based therapeutics could provide a new way to treat a wide range of human diseases. The company has, together with its partner LUMC, a leadership position in fundamental patents, technology, and know-how relating to RNA-based approaches and exon skipping. Prosensa's lead compound for DMD is currently in clinical phase I/II development and the company has received orphan drug designation both in Europe and the U.S.A. Prosensa is elected the European Venture Company of 2007. For more information on Prosensa, please visit www.prosensa.nl.

About AVI BioPharma

AVI BioPharma is focused on the discovery and development of RNA-based drugs using the company's expanded portfolio of proprietary antisense compounds (PMOs). The company's technology applications leverage distinct mechanisms of action in a range of genetic diseases, genetic disorders and the genetic code of disease-causing organisms. The emerging field of directed alternative RNA splicing represents AVI's newest and most exciting application based on the company's core antisense technology. Functional attributes of this approach may include correcting genetic defects (RNA mutations; which AVI believes could produce promising treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy), coding for novel soluble receptors (an exciting and novel approach which could have application in the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis), and the reduction in activity of immune modulators in disease states (currently being applied to IL-10). AVI's RNA-based drug programs also include blocking mRNA translation. More information about AVI is available at www.avibio.com.

Source: CureDuchenne

DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/c12d09/rubber_chemicals_w) has announced the addition of the "Rubber Chemicals World Data Book 2007" report to their offering.

Rubber Chemicals World Data Book 2007 provides an up-to-date and comprehensive overview of the $3.1 billion global market for organic rubber processing chemicals. Though used in small quantities, these chemicals are essential to rubber compounding, where they control vulcanization, ease processing and improve the physical properties of the final product. Materials covered include antioxidants, antiozonants, accelerators, waxes, adhesion promoters and other products (retarders/antiscorch agents, antireversion agents, curing agents, tackifiers, peptizers, foaming and blowing agents and flame retardants). The report provides coverage for all regions and 24 leading countries. Data are presented for all years from 1996 through 2006, with forecasts provided for 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2025. The report includes profiles of 63 leading suppliers, providing intelligence on capacity, product mix, annual rubber chemical sales and recent restructuring activities.

    Major additions to this version include:

    --  Short term forecasts (2008-2010) as well as long term
        forecasts through 2015 and 2025;

    --  Current production capacity for antioxidants (6PPD & TMQ) and
        accelerators by company;

    --  Market share for leading suppliers by region and product
        segment;

    --  The latest information on industry restructuring;

    --  Additional and expanded company profiles for both leading and
        niche suppliers, including many Chinese companies;

    --  A separate Excel file containing the report's statistical data
        and capacity figures in spreadsheet form.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Executive Summary & Key Statistics
- Rubber Chemical Market - Current Trends & Conditions
- Ten Leading Rubber Chemical Consuming Countries
- Rubber Chemicals Suppliers & Market Share

2. Overview
- What are Rubber Chemicals?
- Pricing Trends
- Research & Technology
- Legal, Regulatory & Environmental Issues
- Overview of the Rubber & Tire Sectors

3. Rubber Chemical Demand by Type & Market
- Rubber Chemical Types
- Antidegradants, continued
- Accelerators
- Other Rubber Chemicals
- Rubber Chemical Markets

4. Rubber Chemicals Demand by Region & Country
- World Rubber Chemical Demand
- North America
- European Union 25
- Asia
- South America
- Eastern Europe
- Africa & the Middle East

5. Suppliers, Capacity & Market Share
- Industry Participants & Concentration Levels
- Company Sales, Capacity & Market Share
- Acquisitions & Restructuring
- Supplier Profiles

Companies Mentioned:

- Anshan City Xinda Chemical Co., Ltd.
- Arkema Group
- Bann Quimica Limitada
- Chanzhou Huamei Fine Chemicals Co., Ltd.
- Chemtura Corporation
- Ciba Specialty Chemicals Inc.
- Cytec Industries, Inc.
- Danyang Kangpudun Zhonghuajian Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.
- DC Chemical Co., Ltd.
- Duslo AS (including Istrochem)
- Eliokem SAS
- Emerald Performance Materials (formerly Noveon)
- Flexsys NV (subsidiary of Solutia)
- General Quimica SA
- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
- Hai'an Feiya Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.
- Hebi Huaxia Auxiliary (Accelerator) Co., Ltd.
- Hebi No.1 Rubber Additives Plant
- Henan Huaxian Chemical Plant Co., Ltd.
- Henan Tangyin Yongxin Auxiliary Agent Factory Co., Ltd.
- INDSPEC Chemical Corporation
- Kawaguchi Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.
- Ke Mai (Tianjin) Chemical Technical Co., Ltd.
- Kemerovo JSC "AZOT"
- Korea Kumho Petrochemical Co., Ltd.
- Lanxess GmbH
- Linkwell Rubber Chemicals (Qingdao) Co., Ltd.
- Melamin D.D. Kocevje
- Merchem Limited
- MLPC International
- Nanjing Chemical Industry Corporation
- NOCIL - National Organic Chemical Industries Ltd.
- Northeast Auxiliary Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.
- OM Group Inc.
- Ouchishinko Chemical Industrial Co., Ltd.
- PMC Group International (formerly ICI India Limited)
- Puyong Willing Chemicals Co., Ltd.
- Rockwood Specialties Group, Inc. (Chemetall GmbH)
- Rongcheng Tianyu Technology Co., Ltd.
- Sanshin Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.
- Schill + Seilacher AG (Struktol Company of America)
- Seiko Chemical Co., Ltd.
- Shandong Feida Chemical Science & Technology, Co., Ltd.
- Shandong Shanxian Chemicals Co., Ltd.
- Shandong Yanggu Huatai Chemical Co., Ltd.
- Shanghai Dunhuang Chemical Plant Co., Ltd.
- Shepherd Chemical Company
- SI Group, Inc. (formerly Schenectady International)
- Sinorgchem Group Co. (Shandong Sinorgchem Company)
- Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd.
- Taminco N.V.
- Tianjin No.1 Organic Chemical Plant
- Tongling Chemical Industry Group Corporation
- Total S.A. (Sartomer Company & Cray Valley)
- United Rubber Chemical Co., Ltd.
- RT Vanderbilt Company, Inc.
- Volzhsky Orgsynthese, JSC
- Western Reserve Chemical Corp. & Qingdao Auxiliary Chemical Co., Ltd
- Zhejiang Ultrafine Powders & Chemicals Co., Ltd. (Leqing Ultramicron
  Chemical Co., Ltd.)
- Zhejiang Yongjia Chemical Plant Co., Ltd.
- Zhenjiang Zhenbang Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. (Zhenjiang No.2
  Chemical Factory)
- Zhuzhou Tiancheng Chemicals Co., Ltd.
- Zibo Huamei Chemical Co., Ltd. (formerly Shandong Sanyi Fine
  Chemical Co., Ltd.)


    For more information visit
http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/c12d09/rubber_chemicals_w

Source: Research and Markets Ltd.