Piraeus Bank: Increases financing with ESG criteria

Financing for selected companies, with criteria related to Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG), is provided by Piraeus Bank, in the framework of its broader strategy to support the sustainable development of the Greek economy and businesses and the harmonization of its work with the Principles of Responsible Banking.

According to the announcement, these criteria combine growth and economic performance with social and environmental sustainability and play a key role in the ability of companies to absorb the resources of the Recovery Fund but also to attract investment interest.

It adds that Piraeus is the first Bank in Greece to provide financing with ESG characteristics and environmental sustainability clauses in sectors, from energy and industry until recently shipping, proving in practice its commitment to promoting a cyclically sustainable economy. .

Under the relevant agreements, companies are committed to supporting sustainable development, setting specific goals on a case-by-case basis, including:

• The optimization of their energy efficiency by reducing the final energy consumption per unit of product produced
• The reduction of CO2 emissions per unit of product produced
• The reduction of water consumption per unit of product produced
• The reduction of waste from their production process
• Increasing the use of recycled raw materials
• The implementation of environmental and energy management systems, such as ISO 14001 and ISO 50001

Specifically, Piraeus Bank proceeded to new financing by including in it ESG criteria the companies:

• SEPTONA, a dynamically growing company, with a wide range of personal care products and significant export activity, in over 70 countries. SEPTONA has a customer-oriented orientation and philosophy, highly extroverted character and culture, as well as an excellent index of flexibility, fully responding to the needs and desires of consumers. At the same time, the company supports its development in modern technology, in the superior quality of the products it produces and in the highly know-how human resources. Continuous investments in research and new innovative technologies, combined with a complete quality assurance system at every stage of production, ensure excellent and quality products, making SEPTONA synonymous with Quality, Purity & Naturalness in daily care. It is pointed out that the company SEPTONA, is inextricably linked to the society in which it operates with a vision to promote human dignity and improve the quality of life in collaboration with Foundations & Non-Profit Organizations such as “Doctors Without Borders”, “Ark of the World” ,” The Smile of the Child “,” All Together We Can “,” HOPEgenesis “,” BREATH “,” FLAME “,” WE CAN “,” HOPE “,” Make a Wish Greece “. Under the new financing agreement, SEPTONA is also contractually committed to supporting sustainable development, setting targets for improving energy efficiency, increasing the use of paper from recycling or sustainable management, and gradually replacing some vehicles and forklifts with new ones that have reduced or zero emissions. In addition, the company takes into account in its operation, additional issues related to the Environment, Society and Corporate Governance (Environmental, Social and Governance – ESG).

• CAMPUS, member of the EVROPHARMA Group. It specializes in fresh cow’s milk from high quality biological assets that are raised and housed using standardized techniques. In addition to its privately owned biological assets, it has created the “breeders’ cluster” which is a modern “collaboration” of young breeders in the village of Mesti in Alexandroupolis, according to which the Company undertakes the housing and feeding of herds of specific breeders and at the same time buys the milk from these herds creating significant synergies. This model provides a sufficiently satisfactory income for the cooperating breeders and is a very attractive model for managing herds of animals. The cluster of the Company is a unique and standard model for the data of the domestic market and the only remarkable effort towards the increase of the Greek production of cow milk. The vision of the EVROPHARMA Group is to offer quality dairy products, having the absolute control of the raw materials resulting from vertical production. CAMPUS has a high sense of corporate responsibility, especially in matters related to the natural environment, as it implements a number of actions for its protection and the most efficient use of natural resources. Under the new financing agreement, the company is contractually committed to supporting sustainable development, setting targets for special provision for staff training on environmental issues, significantly improving energy efficiency and reducing consumption of water, as well as the impressive reduction of gaseous pollutant emissions resulting from its activity. Manure and organic waste are disposed of in the adjacent biogas plant with a thermophilic anaerobic process. Green electricity and heat are then generated. The residue, liquid and solid , already pasteurized, is used by the cooperating farmers who supply fodder for the organic fertilization of the fields, replacing chemical fertilizers. This model of waste management-renewable energy production-organic fertilization-feed production, is a shining example of a green circular economy and sustainability.

• SARMED LOGISTICS MON SA  financed through the Bank’s subsidiary, PIRAEUS LEASING, is a pioneering Greek company with a leading position in 3rd Party Logistics (3PL) sector in Greece. The company provides to third parties integrated supply chain management services in a vertical format, with modern technological solutions and highly trained staff. More specifically, it provides dry and refrigerated cargo storage services for all types of temperature categories, transport and distribution services, repackaging services, value-added services (integrated document management, document digitization and internet access of customers to the digital file, cash on delivery, quality control) and specialized IT services (warehouse management system as a service – MyWarehouse, transportation management – Routing and Dispatching, web track & trace, WMS & TMS, proof of delivery – e-PoD, document management, advanced reporting and KPI’s, customer systems integration) . SARMED has always had as its main goal its stable and sustainable development, while increasing its human resources. It takes care of the continuous training and education of its employees in various fields, such as the improvement of their skills and the use of specialized technological solutions for the warehouse management functions and the entire supply chain. Under the new financing agreement for its investment projects, the company is contractually committed to supporting sustainable development, setting targets for improving energy efficiency, increasing the use of paper from recycling and sustainable management, implementing environmental and energy management systems ( ISO 14001 and ISO 50001) and the recognition of the practices it applies with the EcoVadis system. EcoVadis is an internationally recognized system that takes into account Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) issues. The contract with SARMED is the first known Leasing contract that takes into account sustainability criteria.

Total funding

Piraeus Bank, by offering such financing, consistently implements the alignment of its activities with sustainable banking, with multiple benefits for society, the environment, its investors and shareholders.

To date, the Bank has implemented a number of such contracts for large and medium-sized enterprises, with a total amount of financing exceeding € 250 million. Through these contracts, the Bank has actively supported the low carbon circular economy, taking into account issues concerning the impact of funding on society. The environmental benefit that is expected to be achieved in the coming years from the active partnership between the companies and Piraeus Bank is estimated to contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the rational use of raw materials, as well as the protection of the natural environment in general.