SINGAPORE — The United Overseas Bank (UOB) has extended a $200 million sustainability-linked loan to Wilmar International Limited to help advance the agribusiness’ sustainability agenda.
Both the UOB and Wilmar created a list of performance indicators for the loan, including:
- Corporate governance
- Carbon emissions
- Land use and biodiversity
- Community relations
- Supply chain practices
The set indicators will help ensure Wilmar’s operations are socially and environmentally responsible.
The interest rate on the loan will be pegged to Wilmar’s achievement of the pre-determined targets that have been set based on the list of performance indicators.
Sustainalytics, a global independent provider of environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and ratings will conduct the assessment of whether Wilmar has achieved those targets on an annual basis.
“In building a responsible business, Wilmar believes that the pursuit of our sustainability goals must encompass all aspects of our operations including seeking sustainable financing solutions at the corporate level,” said Charles Loo, chief financial officer of Wilmar. “We are very pleased to have UOB’s support with this sustainability-linked loan which aligns our sustainability and corporate financing strategies. It is important to Wilmar that we continue to improver our ESG performance as the business grows.”
Wilmar’s business activities include oil palm cultivation, oilseed crushing, edible oils refining, sugar milling and refining, manufacturing of consumer products, specialty fats, oleochemicals, biodiesel and fertilizers as well as rice and flour milling.
At the core of Wilmar’s strategy is an integrated agribusiness model that encompasses the entire value chain of the agricultural commodity business, from cultivation, processing, merchandising to manufacturing of a wide range of branded agricultural products. It has more than 500 manufacturing plants and a distribution network covering China, India, Indonesia and some 50 other countries. The group has a multinational workforce of about 90,000 people.
