LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ — Craig Muhlhauser, president and CEO of Exide Technologies, has announced he will leave the company on or before April 1, 2005. Mulhauser did not provide a reason for his resignation, other than to say that with the company’s successful emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and with a new board in place it was time for him to pursue new opportunities.

Exide’s board of directors has initiated an active search for Muhlhauser’s replacement and has retained a nationally recognized executive search firm to assist it in identifying appropriate candidates. The board has also created an executive committee to work with Muhlhauser and approve material decisions of the company until a permanent replacement for Muhlhauser is identified.

In related news, the company has appointed J. Timothy Gargaro as executive vice president and CFO. Ian Harvie, who has served as interim CFO, will resume his duties as vice president and controller.

Gargaro comes to Exide with more than 20 years of financial leadership experience with Tier 1 suppliers to the automotive industry. Prior to joining Exide, Gargaro was CFO and executive vice president at Oxford Automotive Inc. Earlier, he was CFO and senior vice president at Delco Remy International Inc. Gargaro’s experience also includes a series of increasingly more senior positions with Lear Corp., including vice president finance – Europe, vice president finance – Daimler Chrysler Division and vice president finance – Ford Division.

For more information about Exide, go to: www.exide.com.

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