OUE REIT made its first interest rate swap with a set of voluntary carbon credits with OCBC, sourced by the OCBC’s Emissions Trading Desk.
The $75 million structured derivative transaction enables OUE LJ3 REIT to hedge against interest rate risks. As part of the transaction, OUE REIT received a fixed amount of high-integrity voluntary carbon credits (VCCs) that will contribute towards investing in a carbon reduction nature-based project in the Southeast Asia region.
This project is certified by Verified Carbon Standard Programme, the world’s most widely-used greenhouse gas (GHG) crediting programme administered by Verra.
Verra is an international non-profit organisation that develops and manages standards for sustainable development, climate action and responsible business practices.
Last year, a slew of media exposés accused carbon credit players like Verra, Gold Standard and South Pole of overstating the actual environmental impact of their products.
After months of dismissing the claims, Verra’s founding CEO stepped down in June 2023.
See also: A US$12 bil climate fund is readying a rare bond issuance
OUE REIT says that the carbon credits received in this transaction will be used to offset OUE REIT’s residual emissions.
Han Khim Siew, CEO of OUE REIT, says the REIT has over 92.5% of its assets located in Singapore where renewable energy capacity is limited, making it challenging to eliminate their GHG emissions in the short term.
“The interest rate swap with VCC feature offered by OCBC allows us to leverage on high-integrity carbon credits that adhere to the United Nations and industry leading standards during our decarbonisation journey. Going forward, we will work closely with our banking partners and investors to explore innovative ways to align our financing requirements with sustainability efforts,” Han says.
Units in OUE REIT closed 1 cent higher or 3.774% up at 27.5 cents.
