Akademiska Hus has worked with sustainability issues since the early 2000s, and sustainability is an important part of everything we do. As part of our financial sustainability work, Akademiska Hus has developed an updated framework for green bonds together with Handelsbanken.
The basis for the green framework that has now been published consists of requirements for both environmental certification and energy efficiency. Akademiska Hus is also covered by the EU Taxonomy Regulation, which contains rules that determine when an economic activity is to be considered environmentally sustainable in the EU. By broadening the framework with parts of the EU Taxonomy criteria, with a focus on the technical criteria, it gives an indication of how well investments under the green framework align with the EU Taxonomy.
"With a new green framework, we want to take the next step and offer investors the opportunity for green financing within our sustainable assets and activities that contribute to the sustainable transition. In addition to our ambitious sustainability requirements, it is particularly gratifying that we now include criteria in line with the EU's definition of sustainable construction through the taxonomy," says Erik Florman, Head of Sustainability at Akademiska Hus.
The framework also provides an updated insight into Akademiska Hus' sustainability work, where we describe our roadmap towards our climate goal – to be climate neutral throughout the value chain by 2035. In addition to real estate, investments linked to energy efficiency, solar cells and climate measures could also be used as a basis for financing.
The design of the framework is based on the Green Bond Principles 2021. The content has been reviewed by Cicero Shades of Green, which has given the framework a rating of Medium Green.
