Nordea Bank : facilitates Ørsted A/S issue of first-ever Nordic Green hybrid bond

An important milestone was achieved for Nordea and the Nordic Green bond market yesterday when Ørsted A/S (formerly DONG Energy) issued the first-ever Nordic Green hybrid bond with Nordea as a joint bookrunner.

Ørsted A/S has undergone a fundamental change in recent years by shifting its strategic focus towards 100 per cent green energy. The new strategy is clearly evident not only from the recent divestment of its upstream oil and gas business but also by changing its name from DONG Energy (short for 'Dansk Olie og Naturgas') to Ørsted (named after the 19th century Danish scientist).

'This clearly marks a historic moment for the Nordic Green bond market. Not only is Ørsted A/S already a global leader in the offshore wind power market, but they also have a clear commitment to achieving 100% coal-free, green energy by 2023. Indeed, this is well reflected in the Dark Green shading from CICERO,' says Jacob Michaelsen, Head of Sustainable Bonds at Nordea.

CICERO, Norway's foremost institute for interdisciplinary climate research, has come up with a grading scale for Green bonds to offer investors better insight into the environmental quality of Green bonds. The Dark Green category, the highest level, is allocated to projects and solutions that correspond to the long-term vision of a low-carbon and climate resilient future.

For more information about the transaction please click here.