Ship finance lenders fall short of sector's carbon targets in 2019

Sparebank 1 Sor-Norge ASA

16/12/2020 24:00

By Jonathan Saul
    LONDON, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Many of the world's biggest
lenders to shipping companies fell short of carbon-cutting
targets last year in the first analysis of CO2 goals for the
sector by financiers, a report showed on Wednesday. 
    Global shipping accounts for nearly 3% of the world’s CO2
emissions and the industry is under pressure to reduce those
emissions and other pollution. About 90% of world trade is
transported by sea.       
    Last year, a group of leading banks signed up to
environmental commitments known as the Poseidon Principles,
whereby financiers take account of efforts to cut CO2 emissions
when providing loans to shipping companies.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N29Z3TO
    The principles establish a common baseline to assess whether
lending portfolios are in line or behind the climate goals set
by the U.N. shipping agency, the International Maritime
Organization (IMO).    
    In the first climate assessment report issued by the
signatories, which includes emissions data collected from
borrowers, just three of 15 financiers - Bpifrance Assurance
Export, Export Credit Norway and ING - were aligned with IMO
decarbonisation targets in 2019.
    "This is not about comparative scoring but taking portfolios
as existed at the end of 2019 and creating a starting point for
each signatory to improve or get into alignment by taking the
relevant decisions on the new business they do," Michael Parker,
chairman of Citi's global shipping, logistics and offshore
business, told Reuters.
    The IMO aims to reduce the industry's greenhouse gas
emissions by 50% from 2008 levels by 2050, a target that will
require the swift development of zero or low emission fuels and
new ship designs using cleaner technology.
    Other lenders that have signed up to the principles are ABN
AMRO, Amsterdam Trade Bank, BNP Paribas, CIC, Citi, Credit
Agricole, Danish Ship Finance, Danske Bank, DNB, Nordea Bank,
Société Générale, Sparebanken Vest. 
    A further five - Credit Suisse, DVB Bank, SEB, SpareBank 1
SR-Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank - will submit their first
assessments in 2021.

 (Editing by Barbara Lewis)
 ((jonathan.saul@thomsonreuters.com; + 44 207 542 4357 ; Reuters
Messaging: jonathan.saul.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))