Rocky Mountain Institute, Global Maritime Forum and UCL Energy Institute announced that 11 major shipping banks, including Citi, Societe Generale and DNB, representing loan portfolio of approximately US$100 billion, will for the first time integrate climate considerations into lending decisions to incentivize maritime shipping’s decarbonization.
The Poseidon Principles are a global framework for assessing and disclosing the climate alignment of financial institutions’ shipping portfolios.
Michael Parker, Global Industry Head of Shipping & Logistics at Citi., says: “As banks, we recognize that our role in the shipping industry enables us to promote responsible environmental stewardship.
“The Poseidon Principles will not only serve our institutions to improve decision making at a strategic level but will also shape a better future for the shipping industry and our society.”
“The Poseidon Principles offer significant benefits to the global shipping industry and society and they allow us as banks to align and de-risk our portfolios in line with shipping’s green transition,” says Paul Taylor, Global Head of Shipping & Offshore at Societe Generale Corporate & Investment Banking.
“We encourage all our colleagues to join us in leading industry-wide change by becoming Signatories of the Poseidon Principles,” says Kristin Holth, Executive Vice President, Global Head of Ocean Industries at DNB.
The Poseidon Principles are consistent with the policies and ambitions of the Initial Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Strategy adopted in April 2018 by member states of the International Maritime Organization.
The strategy prescribes that international shipping must reduce the total annual GHG emissions by at least 50% of 2008 levels by 2050.