National Australia Bank : NAB backs 100th green energy project

National Australia Bank (NAB) in April 2018 financed its 100^th green energy project, providing funding for the Crowlands Wind Farm project in Western Victoria.

Mike Baird, Chief Customer Officer Corporate & Institutional Banking, said the 100-deal milestone cements NAB as the number one arranger of clean renewables project finance in Australia.[1]

'Australia is transitioning to a low-carbon economy and we are supporting that by being at the forefront of the tremendous growth in the clean energy market' he said. 'Projects such as Crowlands Wind Farm demonstrate the high degree of innovation and ingenuity in the clean energy market.'

In total, NAB has provided AUD7 billion in finance for clean energy projects globally since 2003. In Australia, the bank has provided finance to projects that once all operational will provide enough electricity to power 2.1 million homes, which is more than all the occupied private homes in Victoria.[2]

The 39-turbine Crowlands Wind Farm has been made possible by the Melbourne Renewable Energy Project (MREP), a consortium of 14 organisations that, in an Australian first, have combined their energy purchasing power to support the construction of this new renewable energy facility. The organisations have also agreed to buy half the farm's output under a power purchasing agreement (PPA). Pacific Hydro will own and operate the wind farm, and the power will be supplied by its retail arm, Tango Energy.

NAB is a member of the MREP consortium and intends to source about nine per cent of the bank's total electricity supply from the farm, to power a number of business banking centres and branches, including the local Ararat branch. NAB is also mandated lead arranger, bookrunner and swap provider on the deal.

NAB's green credentials

• Committed AUD7 billion from its own balance sheet across 100 transactions
• Committed to providing AUD55 billion in environmental financing by 2025, including AUD20 billion to support corporate finance
• Committed to source more than 50 per cent of the bank's electricity from renewable energy by 2025

[1]Thomson Reuters: Project Finance International 2006-2017 Asia Pacific Initial Mandated Lead Arrangers League Tables - MidYear 2017 US$ Project Allocation, NAB ranking against four major Australian banks - cumulative volume as at 30 June 2017.

[2] NAB data and http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2016/quickstat/2?opendocument