RepoRt on - BNP Paribas

financing renewable energy projects
bnP Paribas is a major player in the
field of renewable energy, especially in
europe, and financed numerous projects
in 2009. it has a team of 120 employees
working across the main countries, who
are qualified to make investment decisions
for renewable energy projects.
in may 2009, bnP Paribas granted a
11.5-year, eur 130 million loan guaranteed
by coface, and a related 5-year
commercial credit facility, to finance a
wind farm in ashegegoda, ethiopia, for
ethiopian electric Power corporation.
bnP Paribas worked with the vergnet
group on its offer to supply and install
wind turbines. the deal will create
the largest wind farm in sub-saharan
africa.
in the uK, the european investment bank
(eib) asked the department of energy
and climate change (decc) to select
three banks to arrange a loan of up to
gbP 1 billion to finance wind farms in the
next three years. bnP Paribas fortis was
the only non-uK bank selected, showing
the group’s strong position as a lender
in the international renewable energies
market.
2009 gold Award
for excellence
in Renewable energy:
financing the energy
of the future
in 2009, bnp paribas won the gold award
in the energy business awards, which reward
companies that make a positive impact
on the way energy business is conducted.
the award recognises bnp paribas’ commitment
to green energy.
environment-focused
services
bnP Paribas offers a wide range of loans
to promote the use of energy-efficient
equipment and materials in the construction
sector, a key issue identified
by france’s grenelle environnement
think-tank.
french retail banking offers a low-interest
personal loan, energibio, to help
clients finance home improvements that
focus on energy savings and sustainable
development.
bnP Paribas Personal finance offers
the bons Plans Écologie loan for clients
planning to buy a new home and install
energy-efficient equipment and materials.
this green loan offers a 1% interest
rate and is available for any amount up
to eur 6,000.
bnP Paribas Personal finance and edf
have joined forces to offer a novel type
of loan, the Prêt photovoltaïque. this
loan can be used to pay for the installation
of solar panels on homes without
having to use up cash. the loan covers
installation by edf and getting the system
up and running. customers receive
government subsidies and a vat rebate,
which they use to repay part of their
loan. the rest of the loan can be paidoff
annually with the help of income
received by selling back to edf any
unused power generated by the solar
panels. this loan enables borrowers to
enjoy a free, green source of energy,
and an additional revenue stream once
the loan is paid off.
bnp paribas
and emissions trading
markets
bnp paribas’s role in the market
the Kyoto Protocol and the eu emissions
trading directive have placed a monetary
value on an environmental factor,
namely, co 2 emissions. a quota mechanism
was set up by the european union
in 2005, called the european union
emissions trading scheme (eu-ets).
the system gives emissions targets to
12,000 european co 2 -emitting industrial
sites, and enables them to attain those
targets more cheaply by trading quotas
on a market.
80 <strong>RepoRt</strong> on CoRpoRate SoCial and enviRonmental ReSponSibility
within this context, the goal of
bnP Paribas’ carbon team is to incorporate
considerations related to greenhouse
gas emissions into all business
lines. the carbon emission restrictions set
out in international agreements will have
a long-term influence on the structure of
assets financed, and need to be taken
into account in financing decisions. in
addition to developing new products,
companies will have to consider the financial
aspects of schemes to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions in the services
they offer. bnP Paribas draws from its
solid skills in asset financing and asset
management to help companies meet
their emissions targets as cost-effectively
as possible.
a full range of co risk management
2
solutions at every project stage:
— eua (european union emission
allowance): a greenhouse gas emissions
allowance granted to entities
participating in the european system
for trading emissions rights.
— cer (certified emission reduction):
a credit equivalent to one tonne of
co reduction achieved through the
2
clean development mechanism.
— eru (emission reduction unit): a
credit equivalent to one tonne of co2 reduction achieved through the joint
implementation (ji) mechanism.
bnP Paribas is actively involved in the
eu-ets for both proprietary and client
trading, and is a major participant in
carbon emissions markets. bnP Paribas
commodity futures is one of the largest
members of the london clearing House
by volume of eua futures cleared and
executed: commodity futures clears
around 20% of orders on the european
climate exchange (ecx), which is the
largest platform for trading carbon
emissions rights in europe. commodity
derivatives is one of the main participants
in the eu-ets. bnP Paribas
commodity futures is a key player in the
carbon credit derivatives market, especially
the carbon credit options market.