Stockholm (NordSIP) – The Swedish National Debt Office (Riksgalden) has announced it was tasked by the Government with issuing green bonds in 2020, at the latest.
The first step will be to set up a framework for the green bonds, which will fund budget expenditure on sustainable investments and projects, according to Riksgalden. Presumably, this will be preceded by a study of the sort of public investments and infrastructure projects that the Swedish government intends to make and followed by a review of the framework by an environmental rating agency such as CICERO.
“We are fully committed to implementing this assignment in an effective and transparent way,” says Debt Office Director-General Hans Lindblad. “The effects of the climate and environmental measures that are funded by the State’s green bonds should be easy for investors to follow and evaluate.”
According to Riksgalden, “the issuance volume shall, according to the assignment, comply with the objective of the debt management and fit well within the volume of green expenditure defined in the budget. The issue can be carried out once the framework is in place and there is a structure for reporting the climate and environmental effects of the expenditures financed by the green bonds.”
The announcement responds to demands from climate-friendly investors for green products and brings some clarity to the rumours of Sweden’s path ahead. The announcement also represents a potential delay from the plans described by Per Bolund, Sweden’s Deputy Finance Minister for Finance and Housing.
“The government should promote the market for green bonds. Sweden has been leading the way,” the minister said in February. “One of the most important findings from our inquiry into this matter is that Sweden should issue a green sovereign bond to promote this market. Already this year we will emit a green sovereign bond.”
