Media Release-Sao Paulo Launch-‘Brazil Edition 2017’ – Bonds & Climate Change-State of the Market

Jay OwenGreen Prosperity, Beyond GDP

Brazil green bond issuance exceeds $3.5bn – Brazil Edition of State of the Market 2017

 

Sustainable forest management and wind power dominate resource use. New ‘Brazil Edition-State of the Market’ predicts growth in the low-carbon agriculture, energy and transportation sectors.

 

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London/São Paulo, October 4th 2017 15:00BST 11:00BRT – The Brazilian labelled green bonds market has now reached $3.67bn thanks to national companies – the latest results in the second Brazil Edition of the Bonds & Climate Change – The State of the Market 2017 report.

 

From the inaugural issuance by BRF in June 2015 to September 2017, nine labelled Brazilian green bonds have been issued, five of them in the international market.

 

The global State of the Market 2017 report is the flagship international stocktake of green finance and green bonds, published annually by the Climate Bonds Initiative, commissioned by HSBC.

 

Brazil Edition, available in English & Portuguese, has been produced in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Brazil’s sustainable finance expert SITAWI and is being launched today at the São Paulo headquarters of Mattos Filho Advogados, accompanied by a live webcast.

 

The report finds that Brazilian bond issuance in Q1 and Q2 2017 reached a total of $288.4bn, with green bonds accounting for 0.2% (in comparison to the global bond market, green bonds made up 4% of issuance in the same period.

 

The State of the Market 2017 Brazil Edition also includes a deep analysis of the market and outlines the investment directions needed to finance Brazil’s low carbon growth in agriculture, forestry, renewable energy and the development of its urban transport sector and other climate smart infrastructure projects.

 

The State of the Market 2017 Brazil Edition also finds domestic green bonds are financing a diverse range of sectors, with clean energy projects accounting for the highest proportion at 42%. Agriculture and Forestry projects, second highest at 24%, followed by Water at 13%, Buildings & Industry at 9%, and Waste & Pollution at 8%. Transport & climate Adaptation make up just 2% each, an indicator of the significant headroom for investment in these areas.

 

Another notable development is the level of heightened demand for Brazil green investment products by international investors highlighted in the response to recent green bonds issued by Klabin ($500m) and BNDES ($1bn).  Both issuances were well oversubscribed and priced below estimate.

 

This and other similar results are an indication that interest in green securities is strong and recent market development initiatives in Brazil have contributed to improve investor and market understanding of green bonds and their benefits.

 

Green bonds were created to fund projects and assets that have positive environmental and/or climate benefits. Although there is no specific regulation, best practice is for issuers to obtain international certification or contract an independent assessment of the green credentials of the assets to gain credibility with investors.

 

In Brazil, for example, the four domestic bonds were evaluated by SITAWI and three of these were also Certified under the Climate Bonds Standard.

 

Among the other findings, the report underlines a significant opportunity to finance the expansion of low carbon agriculture at scale, to increase the diversification of renewable energy sources and to develop resilient infrastructure to meet a new economic standard in the country.

 

Justine Leigh-Bell, Director of Market Development, Climate Bonds Initiative

“Brazil has an extraordinary opportunity to be the global engine of low-carbon agriculture and sustainable growth.  To meet this goal, banks, corporations and governments must work in partnership, on policy and market directions, in developing green finance opportunities and exploring new sources of investment.”

 

Gustavo Pimentel, Sustainable Finance Director, SITAWI

“The Brazilian green finance market should now grow and diversify into sectors. Wind power and sustainable forest management were the low-hanging fruit. We look forward to see issuance for infrastructure, banks and agribusiness.”

 

Juan Ketterer, Chief, Connectivity, Finance & Markets, Inter-American Development Bank

“To leverage private investments needed to bridge infrastructure and productivity gaps in Brazil it is key to further support the development of financial and capital markets. There is a need to attract national and international institutional and impact investors in low-carbon investments and investments with high positive social impacts.”

 

Download English, Baixe aqui em Português.