Linde plc Announces New USD 6 Billion Share Repurchase Program

"Linde plc is committed to investing for future growth, paying a competitive dividend and maintaining an A/A2 credit rating," said Steve Angel, CEO of Linde plc. "And while there continues to be attractive growth opportunities within our investment criteria, the merger of our two strong companies has resulted in surplus cash. Today's announcement of the new USD 6 billion stock repurchase program is an opportunity for us to share this surplus with our owners."

Pursuant to European Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) requirements, this repurchase program must set forth a maximum repurchase amount and an expiration date, which the Board has set at 15% of outstanding shares and 1 February 2021, respectively.

About Linde plc

Linde plc is a leading industrial gases and engineering company with market capitalization of approximately USD 90 billion (EUR 78 billion) and 2017 pro forma sales of USD 27 billion (EUR 24 billion). The company employs approximately 80,000 people globally and serves customers in more than 100 countries worldwide. Linde plc delivers innovative and sustainable solutions to its customers and creates long-term value for all stakeholders. The company is making our world more productive by providing products, technologies and services that help customers improve their economic and environmental performance in a connected world.

For more information about the company, please visit www.lindeplc.com.

Forward-looking Statements

This document contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are identified by terms and phrases such as: anticipate, believe, intend, estimate, expect, continue, should, could, may, plan, project, predict, will, potential, forecast, and similar expressions. They are based on management's reasonable expectations and assumptions as of the date the statements are made but involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation: the ability to successfully integrate the Praxair and Linde AG businesses; regulatory or other limitations and requirements imposed as a result of the business combination of Praxair and Linde AG that could reduce anticipated benefits of the transaction; the risk that Linde plc may be unable to achieve expected synergies or that it may take longer or be more costly than expected to achieve those synergies; the performance of stock markets generally; developments in worldwide and national economies and other international events and circumstances, including trade conflicts and tariffs; changes in foreign currencies and in interest rates; the cost and availability of electric power, natural gas and other raw materials; the ability to achieve price increases to offset cost increases; catastrophic events including natural disasters, epidemics and acts of war and terrorism; the ability to attract, hire, and retain qualified personnel; the impact of changes in financial accounting standards; the impact of changes in pension plan liabilities; the impact of tax, environmental, healthcare and other legislation and government regulation in jurisdictions in which the company operates, including the impact of the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017; the cost and outcomes of investigations, litigation and regulatory proceedings; the impact of potential unusual or non-recurring items; continued timely development and market acceptance of new products and applications; the impact of competitive products and pricing; future financial and operating performance of major customers and industries served; the impact of information technology system failures, network disruptions and breaches in data security; and the effectiveness and speed of integrating new acquisitions into the business. These risks and uncertainties may cause actual future results or circumstances to differ materially from GAAP, IFRS or adjusted projections, estimates or other forward-looking statements.

Linde plc assumes no obligation to update or provide revisions to any forward-looking statement in response to changing circumstances. The above listed risks and uncertainties are further described in the section "Risk Factors" in Linde plc's European Listing Prospectus, published on October 24, 2018, and Item 8.01 of Linde plc's Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on October 31, 2018, which should be reviewed carefully. Please consider Linde plc's forward-looking statements in light of those risks.