Green products, services and funding programmes

We offer products addressed to enterprises of various sizes, individual Customers and farmers. We support our Customers by providing financing – traditional loans and operating leases – for photovoltaic installations and improving the energy efficiency of buildings. We also support processes of obtaining EU funding for the aforementioned purposes.

The offer to our largest Customers, those particularly involved in ESG issues, includes the Sustainability Linked Loan (SLL). It is a general-purpose working capital loan, and its interest rate depends on the fulfilment of KPIs related to the field of ESG.

The following sections describe key eco-friendly products from the perspective of 2021 reporting. Other products, including those for customers from the Food & Agro sector, are presented in the Business Perspective chapter. The full range of our environmentally friendly products can be found at: https://www.bnpparibas.pl/strefa-zielonych-produktow/produkty.

In July 2021, a European logistics operator – Raben Group – signed an agreement for a five-year loan related to sustainable development: Sustainability Linked Loan. The loan amounted to EUR 225 million. Our Bank served as the Sustainability Coordinator during the transaction. It is one of the first SLL syndicated loans in the European logistics industry.

The Bank supports Raben Group with its capabilities and expertise in the first ESG-related financing transaction within the Polish transport and logistics sector. Decarbonisation, social impact and responsible management are becoming a strategic necessity. Therefore, companies will increasingly need sustainable finance as a lever for climate neutrality.

The SLL loan margin depends on the extent to which the company meets the conditions defined by five key performance indicators (KPIs). They include the environment, society and corporate governance (ESG) within the road transport and logistics sector. The set of five indicators focuses on ESG issues relevant to Raben Group’s operations, including greenhouse gas emissions, gender diversity and corporate governance practices. The loan is a milestone for the European road transport and logistics sector, as well as for the Polish financial market.

In October 2021, we implemented a solution addressed to corporate Customers. It facilitates leasing applications for the purchase of electric cars as part of the My Electric government programme.

The Polish electromobility support programme provides co-financing for new electric cars intended for both passenger transport and deliveries. The offer is available at car dealerships.

Since November 2021, the My Electric programme has become open to both corporate and individual Customers who choose to rent in cooperation with Arval.

On 30 June 2021, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and BNP Paribas Leasing Services, a subsidiary of BNP Paribas Bank Polska S.A., have signed a loan agreement of EUR 200 million to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs and midCaps) in Poland.

The first tranches of funding were released in September 2021.

The vast majority of BNP Paribas Leasing Services financing will go to regions covered by the cohesion policy, contributing to the reduction of disparities between various European areas. Moreover, around 20% of the EIB’s funds are to be allocated to projects supporting the fight against climate change. Financing for green investments may include photovoltaic installations, heat pumps and charging stations as well as the purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles. They will contribute to the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Poland and help achieve the target set in Poland’s Energy Policy until 2040.

The Bank’s Customers can obtain attractive loans for the purchase of real estate with Green House certificates, awarded by the Polish Green Building Council (PLGBC). The certificate has been included as one of the Bank’s criteria for granting loans with a reduced margin. Both institutions have also concluded an agreement that strengthens their cooperation. It defines the scope of initiatives for developing and promoting sustainable housing in Poland as part of the Green House and Green Mortgage programme.

This new service was introduced by the Bank in mid-2021 and relies on circular economy principles. It was created in cooperation with the BNP Paribas Group Service Center and offers long-term lease of durable goods. At the beginning, the offer included Apple-branded smartphones, but the list of products offered for rental is gradually expanding.

The Bank’s Customers can obtain a long-term lease of the latest electronic devices models. The Customer pays monthly instalments only as long as the telephone is leased. For an additional fee, insurance and servicing are provided for the device.

When the contract ends, the Customer can return the device or buy it. A portion of the devices returned by Customers is renewed and donated to the Bank’s social partners or the BNP Paribas Foundation. Thus, we contribute to limiting digital exclusion. The remaining ones go to our partners to bring the devices back into circulation (on the secondary market) and give them a second life. We also develop consumers awareness as regards circular economy and support responsible consumption.

In December 2021, the Bank signed an agreement for green financing with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Its total worth is PLN 675 million, and it is intended to support energy-saving investments and the development of new technological solutions.

• PLN 450 million – green loan from EBRD for BNP Paribas Bank
• PLN 225 million – contribution of Bank BNP Paribas
• Funds allocated to supporting the energy efficiency of residential buildings in Poland.

Individual Customers will be able to borrow funds to financing such projects as modernisation of heat sources, thermo-modernisation of the building shell, installation of photovoltaic systems and make a number of other improvements increasing the energy efficiency of their homes. The initiative aims to help combat the problem of high energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions in the Polish housing sector.

Programme beneficiaries receive a grant covering 90% of technical documentation costs, including:

• an initial, simplified technical assessment report, which we offer as the only Bank on the Polish market,
• an energy audit, basic and extended, as well as a range of technical expertise:
  • Basic energy expertise
  • Energy expertise for renewable energy sources integrated in the building
  • Expertise on heat pumps
  • Refrigeration expertise
  • Expert opinion on micro-cogeneration
• and an analysis of the roof’s load-bearing capacity for PV installations..

In 2021, 186 housing communities benefited from ELENA 1 financing, and 169 completed their investments. The applied solutions reduced CO₂ emissions by over 3,300 tons and energy consumption by over 16,450 MWh per year. About 50 companies benefited from ELENA 2 financing, and the total value of funding is almost PLN 80 million.