EQS-News: VERBUND successfully places new EUR 500 million Green Bond including biodiversity

VERBUND AG, Austria's leading utility company, has taken another step in its long-standing green finance strategy and successfully issued a green bond including biodiversity. The green bond including biodiversity for EUR 500 million with a term of 7 years was extremely well received by the investor community in a competitive environment and was therefore oversubscribed more than 6 times at the peak. The high demand made it possible to set the interest rate at an attractive level of 3.250%.

VERBUND intends to use the net proceeds from the issuance of the bond for green projects that are in line with the VERBUND Green Financing Framework, updated in May 2024. The green financing framework was examined by the internationally renowned sustainability rating agency ISS ESG and provided with a second party opinion (available at www.iss.esg.com), which confirms compliance with the EU taxonomy (from November 2022), the Green Bond Principles 2021 (with appendix from June 2022) and the EU Green Bond Standards.

VERBUND intends to use up to 90% of the proceeds from the bond to finance the construction of the 380 kV Salzburg high-voltage line (Salzburg line). The Salzburg line is a key section of the 380 kV high-voltage ring in Austria, which forms the basis of the country’s electricity supply and is therefore of great importance for regional, national and European supply security. With the Salzburg line, which leads to a significant increase in the east-west transport capacity within Austria, the renewable energies generated in eastern Austria can be transported to the pumped storage power plants in western Austria. In this way, the management contributes to the implementation of the Austrian energy strategy and to achieving the Austrian climate protection goals.

In addition, VERBUND intends to finance the projects "LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn" and "LIFE Project Blue Belt Danube Inn" (the "Biodiversity Projects"). The biodiversity projects are part of the VERBUND program to improve ecology and biodiversity around hydropower plants in Austria and Bavaria (Germany). An essential design feature of such concepts are bypass rivers, which restore continuity and at the same time provide important habitats for fish, amphibians, water-bound birds and many other rare river meadow species. After completion of the biodiversity projects, the continuity of the VERBUND power plants on the Danube and Inn shall be fully ensured.

In the past, VERBUND has achieved several milestones in the field of Green Finance: The first Corporate Green Bond of a DACH company in 2014, the world’s first digital "Green Schuldschein loan" and an ESG-linked syndicated loan in 2018, a "Green & Sustainability-linked Bond" in line with the EU Taxonomy in 2021, as well as an ESG-linked promissory note in 2022 and a Sustainability-linked syndicated loan in 2023.

 Important Notice

These materials are not for distribution or release, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States (including its territories and possessions, any State of the United States and the District of Columbia), Australia, Canada, Japan or any other jurisdiction in which such distribution or release would be unlawful. These materials do not constitute or form a part of any offer or solicitation to purchase or subscribe for securities in the United States, Australia, Canada or Japan, or any other jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation may be unlawful. The securities mentioned herein have not been, and will not be, registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The securities may not be offered or sold in the United States, absent registration or an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act. There will be no public offer of the securities in the United States.

This publication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to purchase securities of VERBUND AG. The securities have already been placed.

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