ESG: Investors and businesses target a market of 1.4 trillion. dollars

Her Matinas Harkoftaki

This is a market, the value of which is estimated to reach 1.4 trillion this year. dollars. The reason for the ESG (Environmental Social Governance), where now both internationally and in our country more and more companies from the smallest to the largest are familiar with such investments. After all, until recently, the terms sustainability and corporate social responsibility were used to describe the strategies adopted in this direction. “ESG is not something new, it is a mature market, where everyone wants to get a share,” said Giannis Kaltsas, Greece and Cyprus Finance Director at the European Investment Bank (EIB), at the ESG conference organized by Cleon Conferences Communication and “We believe that climate change will be an even bigger problem and that is why the EIB insists on committing at least 50% of its funding to climate-related projects.”

At the same time, Mr. Kaltsas referred to the change in the position of the EIB regarding the financing of projects related to the defense and security of a country, a very topical issue as the focus of the global interest is the Ukrainian crisis. “In the past, military investment was completely excluded under the organisation’s charter, but this is being re-examined as the EIB is now ready and we have already done so in Germany and France while Greece is under discussion. We are therefore open to financing investments. which we call dual use military applications, which are related to the security of a state “.

In Europe, more emphasis has been placed on environmental issues (ie E) and more specifically on gas emissions due mainly to the effects of climate change, but social issues (ie S) are gradually playing an increasingly important role. “Investors are now looking for opportunities that take into account both environmental and social considerations,” said Marina Petroleka, Fitch Ratings’s global head of ESG Research, at the same conference. “We see that a renewable energy project can be funded in a slightly disadvantaged area, with the aim of not only increasing the share of renewable energy sources but also offering access to this form of electricity in that area.” On the other hand, the US seems to be putting more emphasis on social issues such as hiring workers from under-represented or under-represented groups, and recently Japan has adopted some guidelines for women’s empowerment. The ESG essentially includes the criteria by which sustainable development strategies are evaluated by investors and the business community. Offering a range of values ​​to any company, such as access to financial instruments, attracting long-term investors, transparency and more efficient management as well as better financing conditions, can be a lever for innovation and growth. The environmental goals set by Hellenic Petroleum were referred to by Antonis Mountouris, director, head of the Health, Safety, Environment and Sustainable Development Department of the group, saying that the listed company is committed to reducing by up to 50% the additional 30 flowers. , noted that 60% of the investments, planned for this year, will be directed to its energy transformation. At the same time, the group has upgraded corporate governance according to the new legal framework and best practices, adopting a new corporate identity which will be presented in the near future.