Manila, Philippines, May 8, 2012 —IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has signed a new risk-sharing facility with the Bank of the Philippine Islands for its expanded Sustainable Energy Finance program. The program provides loans and technical advice to energy projects that cut electricity costs and lessen climate change.

This new agreement, which provides for the expansion of the first risk-sharing facility signed in December 2009, will allow IFC and BPI to share the risk for up to 5 billion Philippine pesos of the bank’s portfolio of energy efficiency and renewable energy loans.

BPI was the first Philippine bank to sign up for the Sustainable Energy Finance program after its launch in 2008. The bank has enrolled loans amounting to some 1.4 billion Philippine pesos under the first risk-sharing facility it signed the following year with IFC.  The financial and technical support under the Sustainable Energy Finance program has been benefiting small and medium enterprises in Metro Manila and provincial areas.

“BPI is committed to continue working with IFC on a program that helps small and medium enterprises lower their power costs and improve their bottom line. Sustainable Energy Finance is also one way we are helping address the country’s energy situation to make local businesses more competitive,” said BPI President Aurelio Montinola III.  
                                                 
Serge Devieux, IFC’s Director, Financial Markets Asia, said, “Our partnership with BPI has been very productive not only in terms of the robust lending pipeline it has developed but also in raising awareness among entrepreneurs and demonstrating that lending to energy efficiency and renewable energy projects is potentially a profitable and sustainable business for Philippine banks.”

About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. We help developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, providing advisory services to businesses and governments, and mobilizing capital in the international financial markets. In fiscal 2011, amid economic uncertainty across the globe, we helped our clients create jobs, strengthen environmental performance, and contribute to their local communities—all while driving our investments to an all-time high of nearly $19 billion. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

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