At a ceremony in London, DatacenterDynamics recognized the facility, which will be the central IT-hub for Citi’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Region, and the biggest Citi data center outside United States, for demonstrating a vision of environmental impact as a critical driver in the design and operation of their data facilities.

The Datacentre Leaders' Awards recognize innovation, professionalism and achievement in the U.K. and European data center industry, and the Green Data Centre Award seeks to emphasize the new reality of designing and operating data centers in the context of environmental scrutiny and to celebrate the success of those who have managed to balance their established responsibilities in providing a resilient and responsive facility with the consideration of wider corporate and environmental responsibility.

Upon completion in June 2008, this data center will save up to 25 percent on electrical energy consumption, compared to conventional data centers. In addition, 16,000 megawatt hours will be saved each year, the equivalent needed to power 3,000 average family homes. The amount of carbon dioxide escaping into the atmosphere will be up to 11,000 tons less annually than conventional centers of its size. Savvy water management, including natural drainage of almost 90 percent of the rainwater, will save up to 46.5 million liters in water usage every year.

Head of Citi Realty Services for EMEA, John Killey, said, “Citi’s commitment to ensuring sustainability lies at the heart of all its major projects and the new EMEA data center is no different: “From inception, through construction to operation, a rigorous, resource-efficient, balanced and holistic approach has been adopted that integrates sustainability without compromise to performance or reliability. The result is a project that pioneers solutions transferable to other geographies and applications.

"The award also recognizes the role that outstanding cooperation between Citi's Real Estate and Technology groups along with their design and construction partners has played in ensuring sustainability is in the fore front of this project,” Killey added.

The €170 million data center is part of Citi’s global $50 billion plan to address climate change. Citi has committed to achieving environmental certification globally (LEED - Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design - in the United States) for all new office buildings and operations centers and evaluation of existing larger facilities. This is a critical part of Citi's pledge to embed sustainable practices into its everyday business and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by 10% by 2011 at its more than 16,000 facilities worldwide.

About Citi

Citi, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Citi's major brands include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney and Banamex.

Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.

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