Equator Principles
Project finance: The adoption of the Equator Principles reinforces KBC’s long-standing commitment to environmental and social responsibility in all its activities.
We officially adopted the Equator Principles - the leading financial industry benchmark for determining, assessing and managing environmental and social risks in major industrial and infrastructure projects - on 27 January 2004. The Principles are based on well-established policies and guidelines issued by the International Finance Corporation (IFC, the private-sector arm of the World Bank Group) and the World Bank. KBC has integrated the Equator Principles directly into the KBC General Credit Policy. They are applied throughout KBC’s project finance business worldwide.
In line with the requirements of the Equator Principles, we provide financing or advisory services only when the borrower is willing to comply with the environmental and social processes and policies of these Principles. To this end, we have appointed an Equator Principles coordinator within each entity to act in concert with the central credit department, where ultimate responsibility for reviewing the environmental and social aspects of projects is located.
Number of projects financed by risk category
| 2022 | Category A | Category B | Category C | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Finance | 0 | 3 | 8 | 11 |
| Project Related Corporate Loans1 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 13 |
| Project Finance Advisory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 3 | 21 | 24 |
1 Include Real Estate Development Transactions
In 2022, KBC had 24 transactions under the Equator Principles (compared to 17 in 2022), no category A project (projects with potential significant adverse environmental and social risks and/or severe impact), 3 category B projects (projects with potential limited adverse environmental and social risks and/or impact that are less severe) and 21 category C projects (risks considered minimal and projects in legal compliance in the country of execution).
The Category A project requires strict monitoring of the environmental impact as well as reporting to the competent authorities, which is also included in the credit agreement. Furthermore, the project is required to its own monitoring and present the results to the Authorities, including the regional environmental protection agencies.
Number of projects financed by sector, by region, by designated country and that received an independent review
| 2022 Sector | Category A | Category B | Category C | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Estate | 0 | 0 | 13 | 13 |
| Infrastructure | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Power | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Region | ||||
| Europe | 0 | 3 | 21 | 24 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Designated Country | ||||
| Yes | 0 | 2 | 16 | 18 |
| No | 0 | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| Independent Review | ||||
| Yes | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| No | 0 | 1 | 17 | 18 |
| Consent | ||||
| Yes | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Pending | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| No | 0 | 2 | 14 | 16 |
| TOTAL | 0 | 3 | 21 | 24 |
For an overview of these projects please look for KBC Group N.V. in Equator Principles Financial Institutions Reporter Database.
The reported statistics do not take account of small projects in the renewable energy sector with total investment costs below the 10 million US dollar threshold in both Belgium and Central Europe.
From 2020 onwards our Equator Principles reporting also include large real estate development and real estate re-development projects, however, limited to projects with investment costs exceeding 30 million euros.