SINGAPORE: Singapore Telecommunications, Singtel secures S$535 million five-year green loan, marking a milestone. The telecommunications giant obtained the financing through its subsidiaries, DCW Pte Ltd and DCKC Pte Ltd, with DBS, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC), Standard Chartered Bank, and United Overseas Bank (UOB) serving as the lenders. These financial institutions have also been appointed green loan coordinators, The Edge Singapore reports.
The primary purpose of the green loan is to refinance existing borrowings and provide crucial support to the operations of DC West and DC Kim Chuan, Singtel’s data centre subsidiaries. Both data centres are mandated to maintain a Green Mark GoldPlus certification from Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA), a requirement set by the green loan framework. It is worth noting that both DC West and DC Kim Chuan have already achieved the prestigious Green Mark Platinum certification, the highest level of green building recognition.
Singtel’s Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Arthur Lang, expressed the company’s commitment to aligning financial activities with environmental objectives. Lang highlighted, “Singtel is committed to aligning our borrowings with our environmental objectives, and we are pleased to work with DBS, OCBC, Standard Chartered Bank and UOB to invest in a more sustainable future for everyone.”
Lang further emphasised Singtel’s strategic focus on sustainability, building on the success of previous sustainability-linked loans, bonds, and other initiatives. He stated, “We will build on the success of our sustainability-linked loans, bonds, and other efforts, to further expand our portfolio of green financing initiatives under Olives, Singtel Group’s sustainable financing programme. We will also continue exploring ways to incorporate technologies such as liquid cooling and AI to further improve the efficiency of all our data centres, including our upcoming DC Tuas.”
Singtel’s shares closed at S$2.28 on Dec 4, 05:14 PM SGT. /TISG