Dutch company Royal Schiphol Group, which owns Schiphol airport in Amsterdam, is planning to issue a €500m green bond to fund energy efficiency improvements.
The improvements will be made at airport terminals and pier buildings, commercial and other real estate, including the construction of new energy-efficient buildings.
Money will also be invested in clean transportation assets and infrastructure in Amsterdam.
The proposed bond has also received an E2/74 green evaluation from S&P Global Ratings, the second highest score available on the system.
The S&P green evaluation has a scale from E1 (highest) to E4 (lowest).
S&P Global Ratings primary contact Noemie de la Gorce said: “We expect that Schiphol will use the majority of its €500m proposed green bond to finance the refurbishment of its existing buildings and the construction of new green buildings in its aviation and commercial real estate portfolio.
“In our view, these projects result in significant potential carbon savings compared with a scenario where the buildings are not refurbished.
“However, the medium carbon intensity of the regional grid mix in the Netherlands, dominated by natural gas, limits the scale of the environmental net benefits in a global context compared with more carbon-intense regions.”
S&P added that the E2 score also reflects the procedures that Schiphol has put in place to support the greenness of its transaction, including tracking and auditing the allocation of proceeds to eligible projects, measuring the environmental impact of these projects, and certifying green building projects against high industry standards.