Koch Gateway Joins EPA Environmental Excellence Program; Koch Gateway's Montpelier Facility in Louisiana to Voluntarily Cut Methane Emissions.

WICHITA, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 8, 1998--Koch Gateway Pipeline Company (KGPC) announced today that it has joined the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Natural Gas STAR Program as part of the company's ongoing commitment to environmental excellence. KGPC is a subsidiary of Wichita, Kansas-based Koch Industries, Inc., the nation's second largest privately held company.

"Koch's participation in this program is part of our on-going commitment to protecting and improving the environment," said Don Clay, director for regulatory affairs at Koch Industries. "We believe that by reducing waste and increasing efficiency that you not only protect the environment but that you improve profits. This program matches well with our philosophy on environmental protection and market-based solutions."

The EPA Natural Gas STAR Program, launched in 1995, is a voluntary partnership between the EPA and the natural gas industry to find cost-effective ways of reducing emissions of methane, the primary component of natural gas. The program encourages companies to adopt economically justifiable and cost-effective means to reduce leaks and losses of natural gas. Each member company submits a three-year plan outlining emission reduction targets, with progress documented on an annual basis.

The premise behind the voluntary program is to develop a flexible partnership between the private sector and the EPA that works toward a common goal. Unlike traditional command-and-control regulatory relationships, the STAR Program provides a framework where the EPA works cooperatively with the natural gas industry to assist them with program implementation (through workshops and training courses) and to analyze emerging technologies. In addition, the EPA helps companies remove barriers that stand in the way of implementing otherwise cost-effective practices which protect the environment.

"This is a real nuts and bolts program. By making simple operational changes, we believe that we'll see substantial reductions in the amount of waste at our facility," said Henry Van, Compliance Director for KGPC.

The facility participating in the program is the KGPC Montpelier compressor station, located in St. Helena Parish, Louisiana. The facility is one of the key compressor stations on KGPC's 30" natural gas pipeline that extends from Offshore Louisiana to Kosciusko, Mississippi. The station consists of eight compressor units totaling 12,500 hp as well as ancillary equipment.

"This is a great program. It makes sense for industry and the EPA to work cooperatively and enthusiastically to reduce waste. We want to ensure that we are being very aggressive in this area, so our expectations are high for this program," added Daniel Stecklein, KGPC's senior vice president.

Across a wide spectrum of diverse businesses, Koch Industries and its affiliated companies are committed to being leaders in environmental excellence and achievements. A few examples:

o For volunteering to reduce emissions at its Corpus Christi,

Texas refinery, Koch Refining Company, L.P. was recognized by

Governor George Bush and state environmental protection

leaders. The Texas refinery is also a charter member in

Texas' Clean Industries 2000 program, focused on hazardous

waste reductions. o For its commitment to environmental excellence, Koch Pipeline

Company, L.P. - Ammonia Division was the only pipeline

operation accepted into the Louisiana Environmental

Leadership Pollution Prevention Program. o Koch Carbon's Fincastle Mining operations in Virginia won the

state's Best Overall Reclamation award for returning a former

mining site to forested wildlife habitat. o For a perfect record of safely transporting chemicals around

the nation by rail, Koch Industries won the Thoroughbred

Award from Norfolk Southern Company. o Koch Agriculture Company's subsidiary, Purina Mills, won a

1998 American Feed Industry Association national

Environmental Leadership Award for their waste reduction and

recycling initiatives at their St. Joseph, Missouri facility. o Koch Agriculture Company's Beaverhead cattle ranch in Montana

received state and regional Environmental Stewardship Awards

for its long history of environmental protection activities.

Koch Industries, Inc., based in Wichita, Kansas, is the second largest privately held company in North America, as ranked by Forbes. Koch Industries and its subsidiaries employ more than 16,000 people worldwide and are involved in virtually all phases of the oil and gas industry, as well as in agriculture, chemicals, chemical technology products, energy services, asphalt products, metals and minerals services, real estate and financial investments. For more information on Koch and its environmental commitment, please refer to Koch's home page at www.kochind.com or its environmental performance site at www.kochenvironment.com on the Internet.