Standard Chartered has set up its first green trade finance facility following the unveiling of a new set of sustainable trade finance solutions across Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Europe and the Americas earlier this year.

The facility will support Amplus Energy Solutions, a UAE-based subsidiary of Asian energy firm Amplus Solar, in its solar generation business. Amplus Solar, a member of the Petronas Group, provides low-carbon energy solutions to industrial and commercial customers. The bank says that the financing – the size of which has not been disclosed – will be used to support the company in implementing sustainable practices and building more resilient supply chains.

This is the first outing for Standard Chartered’s new sustainable trade finance proposition, which embeds the Loan Market Association’s (LMA) green and sustainability-linked loan principles into its offering. Launched in March this year, the solution can be used to finance underlying goods to meet agreed sustainability standards, to support trade for suppliers who meet ESG metrics, or to finance trade in sustainable industries, such as renewable energy, and transition activities, such as emissions reduction.

“The proposition, which is optional, is in addition to our traditional trade finance offering and is designed to support our clients in their journey to implement sustainable practices across their supply chains,” Pradeep Nair, head of structured solutions, transaction banking at Standard Chartered told GTR at the launch. “By building the LMA’s principles into our trade financing framework, we hope to encourage improved disclosure and reporting, and eventually result in more focused investments towards a more sustainable future.”

“It is our pleasure to announce the bank’s first green trade facility for the group in support of Petronas and its UAE-based subsidiary, Amplus Dubai, in their progress towards adopting sustainable practices through the enhancement of their global trade processes,” says Rola Abu Manneh, CEO of Standard Chartered UAE, adding that the bank is committed to driving capital towards achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

For the time being, Standard Chartered’s sustainable trade finance offering includes supply chain finance, invoice financing, letters of credit, receivables services, bonds and guarantees. The bank says that more products will follow in due course.