Behind each sustainable issue lies an entire analysis process, meetings with potential investors, a framework for prior financing of the company and, in most cases, an underlying project linked to one of the three parts that come together in the ESG. For years, this type of financing has represented a double opportunity for the company carrying it out. On the one hand, find additional request of this type of investor who focuses his fishing on green bonds and, on the other hand, thanks precisely to this greater demand, in many cases manage to reduce their financing costs on several fundamental points compared to what would have been achieved with a traditional financial vehicle.
In this sense, for Emilio Cerezo, economic and financial director of the company Redeia“the analyzes and studies that have been carried out in recent years actually show a significant difference between financing in compliance with ESG regulations and not doing so. In my opinion, it is an aspect of supply and demand and we see how in the coming years “the supply will increase, also from Redeia, and what we need, it “The demand must be adapted and, for this, the standardization of reporting frameworks is necessary.” “If you gain in this, in visibility and transparency, the demand which could have been discredited will appear,” he adds.
The Director of Finance and Treasury of SacyrPablo Otero also recognizes “an improvement in financial conditions because for many financiers this is a necessary condition for it to be sustainable. The greater the depth of the market, the better the financing conditions”. “Additionally, we assume a series of KPIs that, as we meet them, result in a slight adjustment in the final financial cost,” explains Otero.
“Specialist funds are more accepted because they have more demand for these issuances, although there may or may not be a cost advantage,” says David Maroto, director of financing at Phone. “It is sometimes difficult to measure precisely because we do not have an equivalent of the same size and duration, although we observe that the investor is more stable and tends to stay longer until maturity that in other bonds, which makes it on the secondary market, there is less volatility”. “We think it improves the execution but not so much the price,” he adds.
From Iberdrolaone of the companies with the largest presence in this market, its director of financing and treasury, Jesús Martínez, places precisely this underlying value. “We have been financing decarbonization and the development of renewable energy projects for many years and we have done so in a sustainable way also from the point of view of financial prudence, without drowning ourselves in debt, which is also important. “It’s not so much a question of how many basis points we have reduced, but good financial conditions are generally necessary for the company to realize its plans,” he adds. “Investors want our bonuses for our strategy,” he concludes.
Ricardo Barrenechea, Managing Director of Corporate and Investment Banking, Energy Unit of CaixaBankgives the financier’s point of view, “supporting the client throughout the process with the objective of decarbonizing the economy and as part of our strategic plan, which we closed this year, was the challenge of mobilizing 4 billion, which we have already achieved and which we will increase in view of the next plan that we will present “We consider it important that there is greater standardization of our portfolios, just as the market demands”, adds-. he says. “From now on, sustainable financing is a priority, which is reflected in terms of costs and profitability.”
