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ECT donates 2.25 million Euros to Generation R

[October 7, 2007 - Rotterdam, the Netherlands and Hong Kong] Europe Container Terminals (ECT), a member of the Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Group, is pleased to announce the company has pledged its support to the Erasmus Medical Center for the Rotterdam research project, Generation R, with a donation in the amount of 2.25 million Euros, over a three-year period. A cheque presentation ceremony was organised to coincide with ECT's 40th anniversary celebration.

Generation R is one of the world's most famous epidemiologic research projects. It concerns 10,000 children of different ethnic backgrounds in the City of Rotterdam. The research covers the growth, development and health of children from early pregnancy to young adulthood. The aim of the project is to find out why some children develop optimally and others do not, and to identify some of the factors that can help improve such development. Research results will contribute to the health and care of children growing up in Rotterdam and worldwide.

Speaking at the cheque presentation ceremony, John Meredith, Group Managing Director of HPH, said, "The HPH Group has a long history of participating in community projects in the places we operate and, by supporting this project, we hope to contribute to the well-being of the tens of thousands of children growing up in the City of Rotterdam as well as those all over the world."

Jan Westerhoud, President of ECT, said that the donation is a good way for the company to demonstrate its commitment to the city of Rotterdam. "We are aware of our social responsibilities. With the celebration of ECT's 40th anniversary we feel this is a perfect moment for us to thank the community for their continued support."

Generation R is unique because of the extensiveness of the data to be collected. The data will be measured from early pregnancy and collected from the multi-ethnic group of children participating in the project. Thousands of questionnaires, ultrasounds, medical specimens, and behavioural assessments have already led to important new insights. This is the first time a research and data collection project that has been conducted on this scale anywhere in the world.

The Generation R is being carried out by the Erasmus MC, the Erasmus University of Rotterdam and the Sophia Children's Hospital in cooperation with the Municipal Health Services for Rotterdam and its environs.

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John Meredith (left), Group Managing Director of Hutchison Port Holdings, and Jan Westerhoud (right), President of ECT, present the cheque of 2.25 million Euros at ECT's 40th anniversary celebration ceremony to Professor Hans Buller, Chairman of the Board of Directors Erasmus MC, to support the Generation R research project.

About ECT:

Europe Container Terminals (ECT) is the largest and most advanced container terminal operator in Europe, handling more than 70% of all containers at the Port of Rotterdam. ECT operates the ECT Delta Terminal on the Maasvlakte Peninsula (close to the North Sea) and the ECT Home Terminal & ECT Hanno Terminal in the Eemhaven/Waalhaven area (near the city centre). ECT has developed a network of inland terminals to facilitate better intermodal transport between Rotterdam and the hinterland. In 2006, ECT handled 5.5 million TEU.

ECT is a member of the Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Group, a subsidiary of the multinational conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa Limited (HWL). HPH is the world's leading port investor, developer and operator with interests in 23 countries throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas. Today, HPH operates in 45 ports and owns a number of transportation-related service companies.

For more information, please contact:
Europe Container Terminals
Jan Westerhoud, President of ECT
Telephone: +31 181 278 534, e-mail: Cindy.Kerssemeijer@ect.nl

Erasmus MC
Ceciel van Hemel
Telephone: +31 10 463 52 85, e-mail: c.vanhemel@erasmusmc.nl

For more information on Generation R, please visit
www.generationr.nl