H.I.G. Capital Announces Sale of Thermo Fluids to Affiliate of CIVC Partners.

MIAMI -- H.I.G. Capital, a leading private equity firm based in Miami, Florida, announced today that it has completed the sale of Thermo Fluids ("TFI") to an investor group led by CIVC Partners, L.P., a private equity firm based in Chicago, IL. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

TFI, based in Phoenix, Arizona, is the largest producer of commercial fuel oil from recovered used oil in the western United States. Used oil is collected by TFI and reprocessed to produce fuel oil which is then sold to industrial customers, primarily asphalt manufacturers and paper and pulp companies, as a less expensive alternative energy source to diesel fuel or natural gas. The company collects used oil from a large number of companies across a wide range of industries, including quick-lube and other automotive service companies, auto dealerships, mining operations and industrial companies and from third-party used oil collectors. TFI's portfolio of services provides a "one-stop" solution to generators of used oil who are mandated by government regulations to safely dispose of used oil and related products.

Ian Hislop, CEO of TFI, commenting on the sale, said, "We are excited about our partnership with CIVC Partners and would like to thank H.I.G. for all the valuable support they provided us over the past five years."

H.I.G. acquired TFI in 2001 in partnership with the company's management team. Doug Berman, Managing Director of H.I.G. remarked, "We are very proud of what the TFI management team has accomplished. Over the past five years, through a series of internal growth initiatives and several acquisitions, the company was able to increase sales 5x and EBITDA 8x. Driven by this exceptional growth, TFI has generated an outstanding return for H.I.G. investors."

About H.I.G. Capital:

H.I.G. Capital LLC ("H.I.G.") is a leading private equity and venture capital investment firm with more than $3 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, and San Francisco, H.I.G. specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of profitable and well managed manufacturing or service businesses. H.I.G. also has extensive experience with financial restructurings and operational turnarounds. Since its founding, H.I.G. has completed in excess of 70 transactions. The firm currently manages a portfolio of more than 40 companies with combined revenues in excess of $5 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at http://www.higcapital.com.