The Climate Bonds Initiative has formally launched the criteria for shipping investments that meet the International Climate Bonds Standard (CBS).
The Shipping Criteria were developed via a Technical Working Group (TWG) process with Tristan Smith and Sophie Parker of University College London (UCL) as Lead Technical Consultants.
As previously reported by Bunkerspot, the Climate Bonds Initiative published its draft criteria in May.
In a statement issued yesterday (10 November), the Climate Bonds Initiative said the new criteria provide a ‘clear definition for evaluation whether a shipping project contributes to climate change mitigation’ and ‘guidance on how companies can transition the performance of their assets and their business lines towards zero-carbon’.
Significantly, the criteria require that ships are ‘not primarily dedicated to transporting fossil fuels and are either zero-emission ships at the point of application for Certification or performing below the average operational emissions intensity of their respective size and class throughout the tenor of the bond’. In the latter case, such ships must also provide a Managed Reduction Plan outlining how the ship will continue to transition towards zero-emissions.
Andrew Stephens, Sustainable Shipping Initiative, Executive Director, said: ‘The journey to sustainable shipping requires collaboration by like-minded peers across the shipping value chain. The Climate Bonds Standard’s newly launched Shipping Criteria will provide clear guidance to financial stakeholders, enabling them to leverage their influence in the industry and drive the transition to climate-aligned shipping investments.’
Sophie Parker, Principal Consultant, UMAS International, added: ‘The CS shipping criteria provide climate credibility to green bonds by assessing whether shipping assets are climate-aligned based on both the emissions intensity of the asset over its lifetime and the cargo it carries. By requiring issuers to consider how the asset will stay aligned with a trajectory to zero-emissions by 2050, the criteria provide more transparency to the market, so that financiers can make informed decisions about how their assets will contribute to climate action and mitigate the climate risks that could affect the valuations of their assets.’
Sean Kidney, the CEO of Climate Bonds Initiative, added: ‘The shipping sector has an opportunity to rapidly transition towards zero-carbon emissions. The introduction of the Shipping Criteria to the Climate Bonds Standard opens up another science-based investment pathway for capex to be applied in this sector and delivers a range of positive environmental impacts.’
Full details of the Shipping Criteria for the International Climate Bonds Standard (CBS) can be accessed here.
GLOBAL: Climate Bonds Initiative explains draft criteria for shipping sector
