Delhaize Group Proposes to Appoint François Cornélis as New Member of
its Board of Directors
BRUSSELS, Belgium - March 6, 2008 - Delhaize Group (Euronext
Brussels: DELB, NYSE: DEG), the Belgian international food retailer,
announced today that its Board of Directors will propose to its
shareholders at the Ordinary General Meeting to be held on May 22,
2008 to appoint Mr. François Cornélis as an independent director for
a renewable term of three years. At the same meeting, the Board will
propose the renewal of the mandate of four current independent
members of its Board of Directors: Count Arnoud de Pret, Mr. Jacques
de Vaucleroy, Mr. Hugh Farrington and Baron Luc Vansteenkiste.
Ordinary General Meeting of May 22, 2008
Appointment of New Director
François Cornélis (58). Mr. Cornélis has been Vice Chairman of the
Executive Committee of Total and President of its chemicals division
since 2003. He joined PetroFina in 1973 and was appointed CEO and
Managing Director of PetroFina in 1990. He became Vice Chairman of
the Executive Committee first of TotalFina after the merger of Total
and PetroFina in 1999, and in 2000 of TotalFinaElf (renamed Total in
2003) after the merger with Elf. Mr. Cornélis is Chairman of the
European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC) and the Royal Automobile
Club of Belgium and a member of the Global Advisory Council of The
Conference Board and Chairman of its European Steering Committee. He
is also a director of Sofina. Mr. Cornélis holds a degree in
mechanical engineering from the Université Catholique de Louvain
(UCL), Belgium.
Renewal of Directors and of the Statutory Auditor
The Board of Directors will propose at the Ordinary General Meeting
of May 22, 2008, the renewal of the mandate of the statutory auditor
for a three-year term and the reelection of Count Arnoud de Pret, Mr.
Jacques de Vaucleroy, Mr. Hugh Farrington and Baron Luc Vansteenkiste
as directors for a three-year term. The bios of these four directors
can be found on the Company website, www.delhaizegroup.com.
Extraordinary General Meeting
The Board of Directors will call Delhaize Group's shareholders for an
Extraordinary General Meeting on April 25, 2008. At this meeting, the
Board will propose to the shareholders to renew the authorization
granted to the Board of Directors with respect to the purchase of
Company shares in the ordinary course of business for a maximum of
10% of the outstanding shares of the Company.
Agenda to the Meetings
A complete agenda for the Ordinary and Extraordinary General Meetings
will be included in the Notices to the Meetings, which will be
published on the Company website, www.delhaizegroup.com. The Notices
will also be published in the Belgian press and sent to the Company's
registered shareholders within the timeframes required by Belgian
law.
Delhaize Group
Delhaize Group is a Belgian food retailer present in seven countries
on three continents. At the end of 2007, Delhaize Group's sales
network consisted of 2,545 stores. In 2007, Delhaize Group posted EUR
19.0 billion (USD 26.0 billion) in revenues and EUR 410.1 million
(USD 562.1 million) in net profit. At the end of 2007, Delhaize Group
employed approximately 138,000 people. Delhaize Group is listed on
Euronext Brussels (DELB) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEG).
This press release is available in English, French and Dutch. You can
also find it on http://www.delhaizegroup.com. Questions can be sent
to investor@delhaizegroup.com.
CONTACTS :
Guy Elewaut: + 32 2 412 29 48
Geert Verellen: + 32 2 412 83 62
Aurélie Bultynck: + 32 2 412 83 61
Amy Shue: +1 704 633 82 50 (ext. 2529)
CAUTIONARY NOTE CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements that are included or incorporated by reference in this
press release and other written and oral statements made from time to
time by Delhaize Group and its representatives, other than statements
of historical fact, which address activities, events and developments
that Delhaize Group expects or anticipates will or may occur in the
future, including, without limitation, statements about strategic
options, future strategies and the anticipated benefits of these
strategies are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the
U.S. federal securities laws that are subject to risks and
uncertainties. These forward-looking statements generally can be
identified as statements that include phrases such as "guidance",
"outlook", "projected", "believe", "target", "predict", "estimate",
"forecast", "strategy", "may", "goal", "expect", "anticipate",
"intend", "plan", "foresee", "likely", "will", "should" or other
similar words or phrases. Although such statements are based on
current information, actual outcomes and results may differ
materially from those projected depending upon a variety of factors,
including, but not limited to, changes in the general economy or the
markets of Delhaize Group, in consumer spending, in inflation or
currency exchange rates or in legislation or regulation; competitive
factors; adverse determination with respect to claims; inability to
timely develop, remodel, integrate or convert stores; and supply or
quality control problems with vendors. Additional risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those stated or implied by such forward-looking statements are
described in Delhaize Group's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year
ended December 31, 2006 and other periodic filings made by Delhaize
Group with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which risk
factors are incorporated herein by reference. Delhaize Group
disclaims any obligation to update developments of these risk factors
or to announce publicly any revision to any of the forward-looking
statements contained in this release, or to make corrections to
reflect future events or developments.
