NEFCO Nordic Environment Finance : A new credit facility to boost implementation of green projects in the private sector in Ukraine

NEFCO and the state-owned Ukrgasbank have today launched a new facility to support the implementation of renewable energy projects in Ukraine. The EUR 10 million facility will finance projects implemented by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) over a period of seven years. NEFCO has signed a loan agreement with Ukrgasbank for EUR 5 million, and Ukrgasbank will invest a further EUR 5 million in the facility.

Ukrgasbank, which is the fourth largest bank in Ukraine, has developed a strong portfolio of green projects and already financed and committed to finance over 140 clean energy projects since 2016 within bio fuel, hydro-power, solar and wind, with a total capacity of 845 megawatts. With this joint facility, the Ukrgasbank wants to strengthen its role as a green financier in Ukraine. In 2014, the country set a target for 11 per cent of its energy to come from renewable sources by 2020, and several investments in the field of renewable energy are currently being initiated in the country.

The facility will finance renewable energy projects across Ukraine. Due to a strong pipeline consisting of solar, hydropower, biogas and biomass projects, it is expected that the facility will be fully disbursed during the first quarter of 2019.

'This is a very significant initiative for our bank as it combines two very important aspects of our business, green financing and SME banking, and it is our first facility financing exclusively projects contributing to a clean environment. This joint facility with NEFCO will allow us to expand support for Ukrainian SMEs and contribute to the broader objective of achieving Ukraine's energy independence and combatting climate change,' said Andrii Kravets, First Deputy CEO at Ukrgasbank at its headquarters in Kyiv today.

'NEFCO has been cooperating with Ukrainian banks since the beginning of our presence in the country in 2008, and we are very content to strengthen our role as an on-lender to SMEs working in the environmental field in Ukraine by launching this new facility together with Ukrgasbank. The bank is a leading green financial institution in Ukraine with a strong track record and project pipeline,' commented Magnus Rystedt, Managing Director at NEFCO in connection with the launching event.

NEFCO is currently financing several banks in its core countries of operation in Eastern Europe, addressing the implementation of renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects in the private sector. Since 2008, NEFCO has loan-financed three similar facilities with Ukrainian banks and directly financed several other renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects. The current NEFCO project portfolio in Ukraine comprises 140 projects at various stages of development.

For further information, please contact:

Thor Thorsteinsson, Senior Financial Manager, NEFCO
[e-mail], tel. [phone]

Maya Ganelina, Head of External Relations, Ukrgasbank
[e-mail], tel. [phone]

About UKRGASBANK

Ukrgasbank is the first universal bank in Eastern Europe with a focus on green finance. In 2018, 60 per cent of all new renewable energy capacities in Ukraine were financed by Ukrgasbank. The bank is 95 per cent owned by the Ukrainian government and the fourth largest Ukrainian bank by assets. Ukrgasbank finances projects that contribute to the efficient use of resources, reduction of CO2 emissions and renewable energy development, promoting public and private investment in such projects. Ukrgasbank, which was established in 1993, services about 1 million individuals and over 63 thousand corporate and SME customers. The bank operates 229 branches in over 152 cities and towns throughout Ukraine. Read more at www.ukrgasbank.com/en