Epiroc, the Swedish global market manufacturer of drill rigs and hydraulic breakers for the quarrying, mining and construction industries, and the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) have signed a 10-year sustainability-linked loan agreement.
The US$150 million (SEK 1,555mn) loan, which diversifies Epiroc’s financing, is connected to Epiroc’s climate targets, which support the decarbonisation of the mining and construction industries.
Epiroc’s ambitious sustainability goals for 2030 include halving its emissions. The company’s climate targets, validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in 2021, align with limiting global warming to 1.5° C. Epiroc also aims to offer its full product range in emission-free alternatives by 2030.
The NIB loan agreement includes three key performance indicators (KPIs) for Epiroc’s climate goals, which will be followed up annually for progress tracking and interest rate margin adjustments:
- KPI 1: Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 CO2e emissions by 50% from the baseline year 2019 to 2030.
- KPI 2: Reduce absolute Scope 3 CO2e emissions from the use of sold products by 50% from the baseline year 2019 to 2030.
- KPI 3: Achieve a product offering that includes emission-free alternatives for the full product range by 2030.
Epiroc will use the proceeds for general corporate purposes.
“Epiroc puts a strong focus on providing equipment and solutions that lower emissions significantly,” says Håkan Folin, Epiroc’s chief financial officer. “This financing, linked to how we progress on our ambitious 2030 sustainability goals, will support our continuous development of innovative products and solutions that lower emissions and strengthen safety and productivity for our customers and operations.”
“NIB’s financing is linked to Epiroc’s highly ambitious, industry-leading sustainability targets. Our cooperation showcases how decisive business actions and timely financial instruments can help decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors such as mining,” says André Küüsvek, NIB president and CEO.
NIB is an international financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden. The Bank finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.
