BlackRock Announces Refinancing of Auction Rate Preferred Shares Issued by BlackRock Tax-Exempt Fixed Income Closed-End Funds

BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) today announced the dates for the partial redemptions of auction rate preferred shares (ARPS) issued by 49 of the 60 BlackRock tax-exempt fixed income closed-end funds that currently have ARPS outstanding. The announced redemptions total approximately $488 million and, when taken together with BlackRock’s previously announced redemptions of ARPS, represent more than $3.19 billion of BlackRock’s total outstanding ARPS issued across 66 of its taxable and tax-exempt closed-end funds.

Each of the funds will be using tender option bonds (TOBs) to finance the partial redemption of its ARPS. TOBs are floating rate securities issued by trusts into which a fund has deposited municipal securities. The amount of ARPS being redeemed at this time varies by fund and ranges from 0.4% to 35.8% of the ARPS outstanding for each fund. The ability to utilize TOBs in place of ARPS varies by each fund based, in part, on the eligibility of its underlying municipal bonds for TOBs programs. ARPS refinancing utilizing TOBs is not currently feasible for certain BlackRock funds where the availability of a fund’s municipal bonds eligible for creating TOBs is limited. The extent to which a fund is able to use TOBs to redeem ARPS depends on market conditions, the fund’s portfolio composition, the cost of liquidity and the willingness of liquidity providers to support TOBs, among other factors.

Redemptions will be allocated pro rata among the various series of ARPS of each fund. The Depository Trust Company (DTC), the securities’ holder of record, will determine by random lottery how a partial series redemption will be allocated among each participant broker-dealer account and each participant broker-dealer will determine how to allocate each redemption among the holders of the relevant series of ARPS held by it.

For more information on the specific BlackRock tax-exempt fixed income closed-end fund ARPS that are to be redeemed, including CUSIP numbers and redemption dates, please see the redemption schedule included in this press release.

BlackRock will continue to keep market participants and shareholders informed of its closed-end funds’ progress to redeem ARPS via press releases and on BlackRock’s website at www.blackrock.com.

Redemption Schedule

ARPS Issued by BlackRock Tax-Exempt Fixed Income Closed-End Funds

(Represents 4.7% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 30.9% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 0.7% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 16.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 22.1% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 7.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 0.4% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 29.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 4.1% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 31.8% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 0.8% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 8.9% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 2.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 2.3% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 1.4% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 3.0% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 1.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 10.0% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 2.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 8.5% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 19.7% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 13.4% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 10.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 7.3% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 9.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 8.9% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 3.7% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 1.9% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 14.3% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 9.1% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 8.0% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 11.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 9.8% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 9.8% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 2.3% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 7.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 11.6% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 7.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 16.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 7.4% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 34.5% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 5.5% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 2.4% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 4.5% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 3.7% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 13.2% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 35.8% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 2.5% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

(Represents 0.8% of total outstanding ARPS to be redeemed)

About BlackRock

BlackRock is one of the world’s largest publicly traded investment management firms. At March 31, 2009, BlackRock’s assets under management were $1.283 trillion. The firm manages assets on behalf of institutions and individuals worldwide through a variety of equity, fixed income, cash management and alternative investment products. In addition, a growing number of institutional investors use BlackRock Solutions^® investment system, risk management and financial advisory services. The firm is headquartered in New York City and has employees in 21 countries throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific. For additional information, please visit the firm's website at www.blackrock.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release, and other statements that BlackRock may make, may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, with respect to BlackRock’s future financial or business performance, strategies or expectations. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as "trend,” "potential,” "opportunity,” "pipeline,” "believe,” "comfortable,” "expect,” "anticipate,” "current,” "intention,” "estimate,” "position,” "assume,” "outlook,” "continue,” "remain,” "maintain,” "sustain,” "seek,” "achieve,” and similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as "will,” "would,” "should,” "could,” "may” or similar expressions.

BlackRock cautions that forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which change over time. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and BlackRock assumes no duty to and does not undertake to update forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements and future results could differ materially from historical performance.

The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements or historical occurrences: (1) the ability of the BlackRock closed-end funds that have announced these refinancing plans to implement those plans on a timely basis; (2) the ability of other BlackRock closed-end funds that have issued ARPS but that are not announcing a refinancing plan today to develop and finalize fund-by-fund specific proposals to restructure the leverage of such funds; (3) the need for such other BlackRock closed-end funds to obtain formal fund-by-fund board approval of certain types of specific proposals as they are developed and finalized; (4) the ability of such other BlackRock closed-end funds to negotiate and obtain from broker dealers or other financial institutions the put commitments necessary to make the ARPS eligible for purchase by money market funds on terms acceptable to the BlackRock closed-end funds and in a timely manner; (5) the acceptance by the market, and demand for, ARPS with a put feature in amounts sufficient for such other BlackRock closed-end funds to find investors for all or a portion of their leverage; (6) the need to obtain any necessary regulatory approvals to make the ARPS eligible for purchase by money market funds or for the implementation of such other BlackRock closed-end funds’ plan to restructure their leverage; (7) the effects of changes in market and economic conditions; (8) the impact of legislative and regulatory actions and reforms and regulatory, supervisory or enforcement actions of government agencies relating to BlackRock, Barclays PLC, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch or PNC; (9) other legal and regulatory developments; and (10) other additional risks and uncertainties.