Carbon black maker Birla Carbon has implemented a Green Finance Framework that outlines the criteria and provides guidelines for Birla Carbon to finance eligible Green Projects through Green Loans or Bonds as well as successfully concluded the first Green Finance Transaction under this framework, in the form of a Green Loan of US$50 million. This loan will refinance a part of the capital expenditure which has been incurred towards installing absorber technology to remove various compounds from air emissions levels at the Indian firm’s North Bend plant in Louisiana, US.
This move comes in continuation of the business’ decarbonisation drive to achieve Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050 and the introduction of Continua range of sustainable materials.
Sharing his thoughts on this announcement, Dr. Santrupt B. Misra, Group Director, Birla Carbon, Director, Chemicals, and Director, Group HR, said, “As a global leader in the carbon black industry, we have constantly been exploring opportunities to discover new paths and drive new solutions in the effort of achieving our milestone of Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050. The Green Finance Framework is an organic step in that direction. It challenges us to deliver on our commitments and our vision.”
He further added, ”With the launch of Continua SCM, we have carved a strong position for ourselves in the sustainability and circularity domain within the carbon black industry. We now look forward to exploring innovative solutions that support our goals and that of our customers in the times to come.”
John Loudermilk, CEO, Birla Carbon, said, “Achieving Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050 is at the core of our business strategy at Birla Carbon. The state-of-the-art absorber technology initiative at our Louisiana facility demonstrates our commitment towards using the best available technologies for sustainable manufacturing of carbon black products.” He further added, “In the years ahead, a significant commitment will be required for decarbonization efforts of our process and the introduction of more Sustainable Carbonaceous Materials in the market. Keeping this in mind, such a framework will greatly help finance such projects.”
The Green Finance transaction was led by ANZ as the Lead Green Coordinator and DBS and HSBC as Joint Green Coordinators.