VietNam Business: climate change

Showing posts with label climate change. Show all posts

Saturday, February 5, 2011

IFC eyes An Binh Bank investment

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) plans to forge a long term partnership with An Binh Bank (ABB).

IFC, a financial arm of the World Bank, will provide a long term 75 million USDloan to the bank.

The IFC is considering investing up to 50 million USD in the bank by
purchasing senior and convertible debt instruments. The investment is
expected to help the bank maintain a healthy Capital Adequacy Ratio
(CAR), while improving its loan portfolio.

A reliable
source from An Binh Bank said that the two sides were in the process of
negotiating the 50 million USD investment deal.

The
corporation also plans to provide a 25 million USD loan to the bank to
help support climate change initiatives and enhance financing for
eligible projects in the Energy Efficiency (EE) and Cleaner Production
(CP) sectors. These projects are congruent with the IFC's financial
strategy for Vietnam and are in line with the WB's efforts to use
market mechanisms to mitigate climate change's impacts in Vietnam .

IFC has been working with An Binh Bank on several projects to support
small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and to finance enterprises
that are committed to protecting the environment and conserving energy.
IFC also promises to help An Binh Bank to improve its technological
infrastructure and corporate governance.

By the end of
last month, the bank had total assets worth 36.26 trillion VND (1.85
billion USD) and a total outstanding loan worth 17.95 trillion VND
(920.51 million USD). The bank earned 546.2 billion VND (28 million USD)
in pre-tax profit during the first nine months of the year, a 94.1
percent increase against the same period last year.

An
Binh Bank has 3.48 trillion VND (178.46 million USD) in charter capital,
and the financial institute plans to increase its charter capital to
3.83 trillion VND (196.41 million USD) by the year's end.

Last week the IFC bought 10 percent stake, worth 190 million USD, in Vietinbank./.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Asia-Pacific firms worried over carbon laws - survey

MELBOURNE - Asia-Pacific firms are worried that tougher laws on greenhouse gas emissions will hit financial performance and uncertainties on the issue are already limiting their ability to raise capital, a survey published on Monday showed.

The survey by Standard & Poor's and carbon analytics firm RepuTex also found only a minority of firms demonstrated a high understanding of risks associated with tighter carbon laws.

"Respondents from all sectors across the entire Asia-Pacific region clearly stated that they anticipate climate change to progressively affect their financial statements," it said.

The study found 41 percent of the respondents reported that to a degree they were already feeling the impact of carbon regulations on their fund-raising activity.

It indicated some firms were actively exploring strategies to turn financial risks associated with greenhouse gas emission laws into opportunities to gain a competitive advantage, but only a minority showed a high understanding.

"Existing levels of awareness around factors such as carbon prices, expected climate change regulation, financial risks, and opportunities are relatively low, indicating that there is a substantial knowledge gap that may need to be addressed to achieve effective risk management," said the survey, released at at the annual Carbon Expo Australasia conference.

The survey polled 300 firms but was based on responses from 28 companies although the results also included data from 1,657 Asia Pacific companies monitored by RepuTex.

Around 90 percent of respondents expressed concern about the impact of physical climate change on their industry, with most concern shown by firms operating in Japan, Malaysia, and India.

By sector, real estate, metals and mining, consumer products and transportation saw climate change as having the most physical impact on their operations.

According to data provided by RepuTex, the most carbon-intensive sectors in the Asia-Pacific region are utilities, responsible for 58 percent of the region's emissions, energy, accounting for 18 percent, and materials, 13 percent.

The data showed Japan produced the largest portion of carbon emissions in the region, accounting for 31 percent, followed by China, on 29 percent, and South Korea, 11 percent.

The survey found that 46 percent of a respondents recognized carbon change commitments as a possible source of competitive advantage, leading them to analyze future carbon liabilities while building carbon-management strategies.

Investors wary of carbon risk

Firms in the survey also indicated they believed the evolving regulatory and physical environment in the region meant investors were increasingly identifying firms which posed the greatest risk to their investment portfolios over potential carbon liabilities.

Investors were increasingly seeking to buy stock in carbon-efficient leaders, the companies in the survey believed.

The participating firms also recognized that behavioral change and the use of new technology to reduce carbon footprints opened up opportunities to cut exposure to higher energy costs.

Nearly 80 percent of the respondents chose implementing energy efficiency measures as the most preferable and feasible option to mitigate carbon exposure.

Investing in clean technologies, innovation, and renewable energy, and retrofitting and optimizing existing processes, were chosen by 71 percent of the respondents.

"We believe that this indicates that respondents are taking advantage of low-hanging fruit such as energy-efficiency measures, which often result in cost savings," Standard & Poor's/RepuTex said.

They said the oil and gas, metals and mining, electric utilities, and integrated gas sectors anticipated significant carbon exposure under future emissions trading schemes, and were already performing direct-emissions forecasting to determine future carbon liabilities.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Nation must ‘ensure balanced development'

by Mi Bong

Tam Binh Street in HCM City's Thu Duc District is flooded after heavy rains. Experts say Viet Nam should take more steps to minimise the impacts of climate change when formulating its socio-economic plans. — VNA/VNS Photo Trang Duong

HCM CITY — Viet Nam should ensure that its economic and social needs are balanced, and that its development vision is long-term, experts said at a conference in HCM City on Tuesday.

While agreeing that the priority should be accorded in coming years to maintaining macroeconomic stability and sustaining the growth momentum, both national and international experts said this cannot be achieved at the expense of the natural environment.

The impacts of climate change on socio-economic development were also discussed at the two-day seminar organised by the United Nations Development Programme, Viet Nam's Academy of Social Science and the Committee for Economic Affairs of the National Assembly.

Do Hoai Nam, chairman of the Viet Nam Academy of Social Science, said the nation should develop long-term strategies that take into consideration the world economic situation in the future and its likely impacts on the Vietnamese economy.

Referring to the overall socio-economic development goals for the 2011-15 period with a vision to 2020, Nam said key tasks included inflation control, effective implementation of monetary and fiscal policies, land law amendments, and policies for developing high-quality human resources.

"A social security system that covers the entire country, especially its remote areas, is also vitally important," he said.

He called on the State Bank of Viet Nam to follow a cautious monetary policy to control credit growth and money supply. The central bank should also continue improving its capacity to supervise the financial-monetary system effectively, he added.

Climate change

Measures to protect the environment and cope with climate change were vital for sustainable economic development, he said.

Nam also stressed the important role of State management in the economic restructuring process.

John Hendra, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Viet Nam said in the current domestic and international context, achieving the two objectives of stability and growth required monitoring of all relevant indicators, including inflation, exchange rate, the level and structure of public debt, and the amount of foreign reserves.

"While we all recognise the importance of macroeconomic stability and growth, it is also important to recall that sound development is one that balances economic and social needs," he said.

He also spoke of the need to strengthen links between the National Assembly and research institutions, academic circles and individual experts.

In the first nine months of this year, Viet Nam has seen some recovery from the economic downturn. The GDP grew by 6.4 per cent in the second quarter, up from 5.83 per cent in the first, with sustained high monthly industrial output growth rates of over 14 per cent compared to the same period of last year, the seminar noted.

Inflation has cooled down in the second and third quarter. The accumulative inflation rate was 4.99 per cent till the end of August, possibly enabling the containment of annual inflation rate within the target range of 8-8.5 per cent.

Deficit concerns

However, the lending rate of over 13 per cent has created difficulties for businesses in a market that is not expanding rapidly, speakers noted.

Macroeconomic stability could be threatened if inflation is extended alongside increased pressure of trade deficit, foreign exchange and possible widening of the budget deficit, according to the speakers.

Over the last 10 years, public investments, including State budget investments and investments by State-owned enterprises have increased significantly, absorbing a lot of credit and making it very difficult to curb budget deficit, experts noted.

Vo Dai Luoc of the Viet Nam Asia-Pacific Economic Centre suggested that Viet Nam prioritises development of the private sector as a key motivating force for national economic development; and also ensure greater transparency in its financial system.

Nguyen Minh Phong of the Ha Noi-based Academy of Economic and Social Development Research said the adjustment of exchange rates effected in the recent past was necessary and correct as a measure to curb inflation.

He said that in the coming time, there was a need to adjust the exchange rate flexibly according to market situations. Businesses need to watch out for exchange rate fluctuations and accommodate them in their dealings to avoid losses, he said. — VNS

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Vietnam’s growth faces unclean energy threat: Finnish minister

Vietnam’s growth faces unclean energy threat: Finnish minister Vietnam’s economy will face a serious sustainable development challenge if it does not adopt clean and efficient energy practices, Finnish labor minister Anni Sinnemäki said early this week.

Sinnemäki, who was leading a Finnish business delegation on a visit to Vietnam this week, said Vietnam, as one of ten countries where climate change would have the most serious impacts, should consider alternatives as it develops.

“I am very impressed with the economic growth here in Vietnam but worried for people who have suffered the impact of climate change,” the minister said in a meeting of Vietnamese and Finnish businesses, also attended by her Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

Production and consumption have increased around the globe while the “biocapacity” of the planet has decreased, creating an ecological and environmental imbalance on earth, she said.

Climate change was a challenge not for Vietnam and its government but for the entire world and all the governments, said the minister.

Sinnemäki said the Vietnamese government’s policy to support and encourage local businesses to achieve energy efficiency in production was a good measure to fight climate change.

Vietnamese labor minister Ngan said Vietnam was on the recovery road after the global crisis and needed modern and energy efficient technologies to develop sustainably.

She said the use of old technologies in production was a trend in the country that it had a bearing on climate change.

The Vietnamese government has asked local businesses to choose clean and energy efficient solutions, and called on foreign investors to introduce and transfer modern technologies to Vietnam, Ngan said.

Sinnemäki said Finland has been one of the world’s leading countries in developing clean and energy efficient technologies for decades and would share this with local businesses.

Santtu Hulkkonen, executive director of Cleantech Finland, said Finnish businesses considered Vietnam a potential market and some companies like Kemira have been present here for years, seeking new opportunities.

Cleantech Finland is a collective of 2,000 firms that specialize in many areas including energy efficiency, clean industrial processes, renewable energy, waste management and wastewater treatment.

The group said in a statement that Vietnam has a large demand for wastewater treatment and environmentally friendly energy sources.

Emissions from fossil fuel combustion and wastewater released by industrial processes have damaged the environment and affected people’s lives, the group said.

Hulkkonen told Thanh Nien Weekly Finnish firms were at present involved in ten projects, worth about 100 million euros, that deal with transferring clean and energy efficient technologies to Vietnam. About 13 to 20 other projects worth 40 to 50 million euros were about to be implemented, he said.