Keppel Reit sets up green financing framework as it issues $158m worth of green notes
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Keppel Reit’s new framework will set the standards for all the green finance transactions it issues.
PHOTO: KEPPEL
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SINGAPORE – Keppel real estate investment trust or Keppel Reit has put in place a framework for green financing, just as it issues A$175 million (S$158 million) worth of green notes.
This new framework, of which DBS is sole adviser, will set the standards for all the green finance transactions Keppel Reit issues.
These include bonds, term loans, revolving credit facilities, medium-term notes, convertible bonds, perpetual securities and any other financial instrument publicly or privately placed in various formats, tenure and currency.
In a statement issued on June 26, the firm said the new framework outlines how it would use proceeds, the process for project evaluation and selection, the management of proceeds and the reporting process.
It was developed in line with the four core components of the International Capital Market Association’s Green Bond Principles 2021, and the Green Loan Principles 2023 administered by the Loan Market Association, the Asia Pacific Loan Market Association, and the Loan Syndications and Trading Association.
The move is aimed at supporting the firm’s sustainability efforts and facilitating the achievement of its environmental, social and governance targets and commitments.
The framework has been externally reviewed by Moody’s Investors Service. Mr Koh Wee Lih, chief executive of Keppel Reit Management, manager of Keppel Reit, said the framework will guide its investments towards building a future-oriented and resilient portfolio, while supporting its long-term sustainability goals.
Keppel Reit, supported by its green-certified properties, said its sustainability-focused funding made up 63 per cent of its total borrowings as at the end of March 2024. It added that it has on June 26 issued A$175 million in aggregate principal amount of floating rate green notes that are due 2027 under its multicurrency debt issuance programme.
The net proceeds from this issue will be fully used to fund a part of the Reit’s acquisition of a 50 per cent stake in 255 George Street in Sydney that meets the eligibility criteria set out in the framework.
Keppel Reit has a portfolio value of over $9 billion, comprising properties in Singapore, key Australian cities Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, in Seoul, and in Tokyo.
