Recently, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation successfully obtained a RMB transformation finance loan credit line granted by Bank of Communications Shanghai Branch in accordance with the standards of the “Financial Catalogue for the Transformation of the Water Transport Industry” (hereinafter referred to as the “Catalogue”), and realized the first loan of 273 million yuan (approximately US$38 million).
This loan is specifically used for new oil tankers that adopt advanced methanol dual-fuel or methanol READY power systems, marking the successful implementation of the first financial loan in the country that strictly complies with the “Directory” for the transformation of the water transportation industry, setting a new benchmark for green financing in the industry.
This financing project strictly complies with the requirements of the Catalogue, demonstrating COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation’s firm commitment and leading practices in implementing its green transformation strategy:
Technological innovation leads to low-carbon navigation: Newly built vessels not only use low-carbon methanol fuel technology, but also comprehensively apply a number of cutting-edge technologies such as hydrodynamic energy-saving devices and intelligent systems. It is estimated that the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) of new vessels will be significantly better than the strict entry standards set by the Catalogue.
Green finance supports transformative development: Project innovation introduces Bank of Communications’ sustainability-linked loan (SLL) product, using the core indicator of the Catalogue—EEDI performance of newly built ships—as a sustainability performance target (SPT) to ensure that environmental benefits are measurable and verifiable.
Strengthening enterprise strategy empowers management upgrading: The successful landing of this fund has become a powerful engine for COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation to accelerate the core strategy of “green and intelligent transformation of the shipping industry”, effectively promoting the leapfrog development of the enterprise’s sustainable development capacity.
Looking ahead, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation will take this innovative financing as an important opportunity to continue to deepen cooperation with financial institutions, make full use of transformative financial policy tools, accelerate the pace of green upgrades and intelligent transformation of the fleet, and contribute to helping the country build a strong shipping nation, serving the level of Shanghai International Shipping Center, and supporting Shanghai in building an international green finance hub.