The country’s biggest lender, State Bank of India, has become a signatory investor to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a collaboration of over 550 institutional investors with assets under management of US $ 71 trillion.
State Bank has been undertaking several environmentally and socially sustainable initiatives through its 14000 plus branches spread across the length and breadth of the country and was one of the few banks in the country to have enunciated a ‘Green Banking Policy’, as early as in 2007. “Bank was the first in the entire Banking, Insurance and Financial Services sector to have conceptualised and owned wind farms for generation of green power to part substitute consumption of thermal power by its offices in India and we have already launched a project to measure and manage organization level foot print to achieve carbon neutrality” said Shri O.P.Bhatt, Chairman, State Bank of India. “Partnering with CDP has only reiterated the Bank’s resolve and commitment towards sustainable development” he said.
“We are delighted to welcome the financial powerhouse, State Bank of India, as a signatory. As much of the world’s economic recovery will now come from rapid growth in emerging economies like India, it was crucial for us to have a strong partner like the SBI to promote the truly global fight for sustainable development,” said Paul Simpson, CEO of CDP.
"We are pleased that State Bank of India has become a signatory, as this conveys a strong message to the Indian finance sector and the strategic role it can play in promoting a sustainable future" said Ravi Singh, Secretary General and CEO of WWF-India.
Being a major bank in the country, SBI stands to become a great catalyst in encouraging the adoption of sustainable strategies by both - businesses and the financial sector. We congratulate SBI on becoming a signatory to CDP; this is a very important milestone for the initiative in India” said Seema Arora, Principal Counsellor & Head of CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development.
Each year, on behalf of signatory investors, the CDP collects climate change and carbon emissions data from over 5,000 large companies globally, which include the top 200 companies in India listed on the National Stock Exchange. Over 550 institutional investors - ranging from pension funds like TIAA-CREF and insurance companies like Allianz and Swiss Re through blue chip banks and asset managers such as Black Rock, HSBC, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley - are signatories to the CDP.
In India, investors such as HDFC Bank Ltd., IDBI, IDFC, Reliance Capital, Tata Capital, IndusInd Bank and Yes Bank have also become signatories. CDP sends an annual letter and questionnaire on behalf of these financial institutions to the top 200 Indian companies by market capitalization. In 2010, 51 Indian companies responded to the questionnaire. In the disclosure, Indian companies reported on their carbon emissions data, reduction targets, associated risks and opportunities and increasing board level managerial resources in spearheading the execution of climate change strategies within their organisations.
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- Compared to the 62% in 2009, 85% of the companies disclosed their GHG emissions in 2010.
- Although in total only 10 companies disclosed monetary savings as a result of their actions, the reported amount stands at a staggering Rs. 393.3 crores (~US$ 85 million), with emissions reductions of 6.2 million metric tonnes of CO2e per year.
About Investor CDP
In 2010, over 2,000 global companies reported on their climate strategies, GHG emissions and energy use, including 82% of the top 500 companies in the FTSE Global Equity Series Index. On February 1st 2011 the Investor CDP information request will be sent out to more than 5,000 companies in over 30 major economies in both developed and emerging markets.
A recent study revealed that the world’s top 3,000 companies, by market capitalization, were responsible for environmental damages worth US $2.15 trillion, in 2008, covering water and air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, general waste and depleted resources. These external costs caused by companies can reduce returns to investors: “For a diversified investor, environmental costs are unavoidable as they come back into the portfolio as insurance premiums, taxes, inflated input prices and the physical cost associated with disasters. These costs could also reduce future cash flows and dividends. Ultimately, externalities caused by companies could significantly affect the value of capital markets, or their potential for growth, and with that, the value of diversified portfolios,” according to a report of the UNEP’s Financial Initiative.
CDP provides investors, insurance companies and banks with a lens through which to evaluate these externalities and how they will impact their specific portfolio.
About the Project Partners
State Bank of India
As a responsible Corporate Citizen, the Bank has always been in the forefront and has been undertaking various initiatives through its Community Services Banking towards welfare of the society as a whole. Be it tree plantation or adoption of a girl child, engaging with various NGOs to facilitate education or providing medical & other services to the underprivileged, or helping in any other social cause, the Bank through its vast network of about 14000 plus branches has been participating wholeheartedly in supporting these causes.
The issues of Global Warming and Climate Change have also not escaped the attention of the Bank. It was as early as in 2007 when a formal Green Banking Policy was laid down by the Bank. And since then the Bank has been endeavouring for reduction of its carbon footprint by urging its vast network of branches and other establishments to adopt several measures to this end, including energy efficient lighting systems, installation of energy savers, water harvesting and efficient water and waste management systems, gradual migration to paperless banking, plantation of fruit bearing trees, etc. Moreover with a view to sensitizing all its staff members, the Bank has also introduced awareness modules in all its training programmes run in the various learning facilities all over the country.
The foray into Green power is also one such initiative that the Bank has taken towards achieving carbon neutrality over a period of time. As a move towards that end, it was decided to install windmills for generation of green power for Bank’s captive use with a view to substitute polluting thermal power. In the process, SBI has emerged as the first Bank in India to install Wind Mills for captive use, which will go a long way in reducing its carbon footprint and projecting itself as a role model for others to emulate.
In the second phase, discussions have been initiated with various State Electricity Regulatory Authorities to obtain clearance on issues relating to multi point wheeling facility to HT as well as LT connections. In this context, discussions with the Gujarat Energy Development Authority to permit LT wheeling to enable the Bank to install additional 20 MW capacity windmills in the State are at an advanced stage.
Besides the above, the Bank has also undertaken a pilot study in respect of LEWWAC (Land, Energy, Water, Waste, Air & Carbon) management to establish carbon emission baselines, developing benchmarks and working on economically feasible ecological solutions for implementation, with the help of external consultants. Based on the finding emerged out of the pilot study, Bank has decided to implement some measures suggested in the pilot project report in order to test their usefulness so that such measures can be rolled out across all its establishments in order to achieve internationally acceptable standards. Accordingly, adopting ‘Green Building’ standards in all the future constructions of the Bank and initiating every possible measure that will help protecting the environment will be the endeavour of the Bank with the aim of setting an example of Corporate Social Responsibility & reducing Bank’s direct as well as indirect carbon foot prints.
Besides internal greening of the Bank, as a part of the Green Banking Policy, the Bank also encourages its clients to adopt greening policies by switching over to efficient manufacturing technologies, and implementing energy efficient systems etc by offering to lend at concessional rate of interest. Clean Development Mechanism projects are offered a loan product – Carbon Credit Plus – that provides for financing of the resultant CER receivables.
WWF-India
WWF-India is one of India’s largest and most respected independent conservation organizations. Its mission is to stop the degradation of the planet’s natural environment, which it addresses through its work in biodiversity conservation and reduction of humanity’s ecological footprint. As part of its conservation agenda, WWF also partners with businesses to mainstream sustainable development, as part of their business operations.
CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development
This pioneering effort of CII was launched in January 2006. It creates an enabling climate for Indian businesses to pursue sustainability goals by promoting thought leadership and building capacity to achieve sustainability across a gamut of issues to implement India’s agenda for inclusive growth. The Centre enables businesses to transform themselves by embedding concepts of sustainable development into their strategies, decisions and processes.
Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)
The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is an independent not-for-profit organization holding the largest database of primary corporate climate change information in the world. Some 3,000 organizations across the world’s largest economies now measure and disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate change strategies through CDP, in order that they can set reduction targets and make performance improvements. This data is gathered on behalf of 534 institutional investors, with combined assets under management in excess of $64 trillion, as well as purchasing organizations and government bodies and made available for integration into business and policy decision making.