The Netherlands – Gasunie launched its first green bond, a 9.5-year, 300 million euro loan. The market was quite interested; nearly five times as many people registered as there was space available.
The building of the national hydrogen network is one of Gasunie’s energy transition initiatives that it plans to finance in part with the revenues. The first gas transmission system operator to issue a green bond in the eurozone is Gasunie.
Up to and including 2030, Gasunie now projects investing in excess of 5.5 billion euros in new infrastructure for the transportation and storage of “sustainable” gases, including heat, hydrogen, collected CO2, and green gas. A portion of the funding demand will be met by Gasunie’s equity and subsidies. In the upcoming years, Gasunie plans to consistently issue green bonds to cover the remaining amount.
WarmtelinQ, Porthos and Hydrogennet
The first initiatives under Gasunie’s energy transition plan are about to go into production. The first shovel for the national hydrogen network was recently broken in Rotterdam, and the firm has approved Porthos, where Gasunie will cooperate with partners to transport and store enormous amounts of CO2. Meanwhile, Gasunie is constructing WarmtelinQ, a device that will enable the corporation to deliver leftover heat from the Rotterdam port to residences and businesses in the Leiden and The Hague area.
According to Gasunie, financing energy-related investments must likewise follow a “green” approach. Only ‘green’ spending purposes, which the business must record in a specific register, may be funded with the profits from a green bond. The Green Financing Framework, released this month by Gasunie, is compatible with the Gasunie green bond. In this regard, the Framework conforms to a number of significant international standards.
