Ahold Delhaize successfully priced its inaugural Green Bond
Zaandam, the Netherlands, March 28, 2023 – Ahold Delhaize today announced that it successfully priced a €500 million Green Bond, with a term of 5 years, maturing on April 4, 2028.
The transaction marks Ahold Delhaize’s inaugural Green Bond issuance and follows its Sustainability Bond issuance in 2019, the €1bn Sustainability-Linked RCF launched in 2020 and refinanced to €1.5bn in 2022, and the Sustainability-Linked Bond issuance in 2021. All these ESG-labelled financings together reinforce the continued alignment of the company’s funding strategy to its sustainability strategy and overall ESG ambitions.
Use of bond proceeds
The bond proceeds will be used to finance and re-finance Ahold Delhaize’s new or existing environmentally friendly assets with a positive measurable environmental impact in the following categories:
- Green Buildings
- Renewable Energy
- Energy Efficiency
- Clean Transportation
- Pollution Prevention and Control
Updated Green Finance Framework
Ahold Delhaize has published an updated Green Finance Framework (the “Framework”) structured in accordance with the International Capital Markets Association (ICMA) Green Bond Principles (2021) and Loan Market Association (LMA) Green Loan Principles (2023) to detail the quality of the Eligible Green Projects and the governance process around green finance. The Framework has been reviewed by the external ESG agency Sustainalytics which has provided a positive Second-Party Opinion.
The Green Finance Framework and the relative Second Party Opinion are available here.
Confirming commitment
Jan Ernst de Groot, Chief Sustainability Officer said: “We’re excited to announce the issuance of the first Green Bond and fourth ESG financing instrument for the company. This transaction confirms Ahold Delhaize’s aspiration to taking up its sustainability challenges and mobilizing its teams to strive to create sustainable value for all its stakeholders. This step supports our updated climate plans announced last year, and allows us to accelerate our contribution to the transition to sustainable food systems.”
Pricing of issuance
The issuance is priced at 99.851 per cent and carries an annual coupon of 3.500 per cent. The notes will settle on April 4, 2023 and shall be listed on Euronext Amsterdam. BofA Securities and ING acted as Green Structuring Co-ordinators. BNP Paribas, BofA Securities, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE, ING and Wells Fargo Securities acted as Joint Bookrunners.
Cautionary notice
This communication is not for release, distribution or publication, whether directly or indirectly and whether in whole or in part, into or in the United States, Australia, Canada or Japan or any (other) jurisdiction where any of such activities would constitute a violation of the relevant laws of such jurisdiction.
The offer of bonds referred to in this communication was limited in the EEA and the United Kingdom to qualified investors only. The bonds have not been and will not be registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “US Securities Act”) and will also not be registered with any authority competent with respect to securities in any state or other jurisdiction of the United States of America. The bonds may not be offered or sold in the United States of America without either registration of the securities or an exemption from registration under the US Securities Act being applicable.
This communication includes forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical facts may be forward-looking statements. Words and expressions such as maturing, 2028, continued, alignment, strategy, ambitions, will, new, aspiration, strive, accelerate, transition, shall or other similar words or expressions are typically used to identify forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that are difficult to predict and that may cause actual results of Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize N.V. (the “Company”) to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to, the risk factors set forth in the Company’s public filings and other disclosures. Forward-looking statement reflect the current views of the Company’s management and assumptions based on information currently available to the Company’s management. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and the Company does not assume any obligation to update such statements, except as required by law.
