Two more big lenders commit to aligning shipping loans to IMO GHG goals

Written by Nick Blenkey
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Michael Parker, Chairman of Global Shipping Logistics & Offshore at Citi and Chair of the Poseidon Principles Association.

The world’s largest lender to global shipping, BNP Paribas, and leading wealth manager Credit Suisse have become the fifteenth and sixteenth financial institutions to sign on to the Poseidon Principles.

With BNP Paribas and Credit Suisse now on board, signatories to the Poseidon Principles represent around $140 billion in loans to international shipping – about 30% of the total global ship finance portfolio.

“The decision of BNP Paribas and Credit Suisse to sign on to the Poseidon Principles represents another milestone for responsible ship finance. We welcome their leadership and we encourage other serious financial institutions to join them in serving global seaborne trade in a sustainable manner,” says Michael Parker, Chairman of Global Shipping Logistics & Offshore at Citi and Chair of the Poseidon Principles Association.

The principles establish a common framework to quantitatively assess and disclose whether financial institutions’ lending portfolios are in line with the climate goals set by IMO that call for total annual GHG emissions from shipping at least 50% by 2050, with a strong emphasis on zero emissions.

The principles are designed to support ship owners in achieving the “at least 50% by 2050” reduction target and to help financial institutions in managing critical investment risks.

“As a leading and longstanding lender to the global maritime industry, we welcome the establishment of the Poseidon Principles, an industry-wide and self-volunteered initiative that reflects our own commitment to combat climate change and protect the oceans,” says Vincent Pascal, Head of Shipping & Offshore Finance EMEA at BNP Paribas.

“The Poseidon Principles are key to leading industry-wide change. Along with our co-signatories, we aim to align our ship finance portfolio to be environmentally responsible and to lead by example in the reduction of GHG emissions. Joining the principles shows our clear and continued commitment to sustainable shipping – being there to support our clients in their business and in their transition to a low-carbon shipping industry,” says Mario Béhé, Global Head of Ship Finance at Credit Suisse.

Signatories of the Poseidon Principles include, ABN Amro, Amsterdam Trade Bank, BNP Paribas, Citi, Credit Agricole CIB, Credit Industriel et Commercial, Credit Suisse, Danish Ship Finance, Danske Bank, DNB, DVB, Export Credit Norway, ING, Nordea, Société Générale, and Sparebanken Vest.

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