Nex's green building rating was recently upgraded to BCA Green Mark Gold Plus, following improvements to its recycling program, chiller system, green procurement policy, and water management system.
Gold Ridge will be refinancing Nex shopping mall, which it owns, using a S$900 million ($669 million) green loan jointly issued by DBS, UOB and OCBC, according to a joint statement on Tuesday.
The green loan – Gold Ridge's first – was raised under a framework established by PGIM Real Estate, the asset manager of NEX, Gold Ridge shareholders, and the banks, which acted as joint advisors.
Green Push
«The strategic improvements completed at NEX geared toward furthering the sustainability of the asset are demonstrative of PGIM Real Estate’s broader commitment to incorporating ESG principles across our global portfolio,» Benett Theseira, PGIM Real Estate’s head of Asia Pacific, said in the announcement.
Singapore's three banks have been making a concerted push to accelerate their sustainability plans and grow their green loan assets: OCBC has targeted a S$25 billion sustainable finance portfolio by 2025; DBS aims to reach S$50 billion in sustainable financing by 2024; and UOB recently expanded its Green Infrastructure Financing Framework to support the sustainability efforts of more companies from various sectors.
