New York Stock Exchange To Suspend, Apply To Delist Elf Aquitaine

The New York Stock Exchange announced today that trading in the U.S. American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) -ticker symbol ELF- of Elf Aquitaine will not be resumed and will be suspended prior to market opening on Tuesday, September 5, 2000. Following the suspension, application will be made to the Securities and Exchange Commission to delist the issue.

The NYSE said it normally considers suspending and removing from its list a security and any related secuties of a company when fewer than 600,000 ADRs are held by the public. As a result of a tender offer by Total Fina Elf S.A. -ticker symbol TOT- which expired at 6:00 p.m. E.S.T. on September 1, 2000, fewer than 600,000 Elf Aquitaine ADRs remain publicly held.