Commercial, Energy Efficiency, GHG Emissions  -  December 2, 2022

Swedbank Sets 2030 Climate Targets

Swedbank adopted 2030 decarbonization targets for its lending portfolio in the following sectors: mortgages, commercial real estate, oil & gas, power generation, and steel. 

The targets are part of Swedbank’s commitment to the Science-Based Targets initiative and the Net-Zero Banking Alliance.

“Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time. And as Sweden's largest real estate bank, we have a unique opportunity to facilitate the green energy transition in this sector. This also applies to our home markets in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. We are doing this by setting ambitious climate targets for 2030 based on scientific research,” says Jens Henriksson, President and CEO, Swedbank, in a statement.  “Urgent actions are needed to limit global warming. Swedbank is taking an active role in this effort by advising and supporting our clients in the transition.”

The financed emission baselines were calculated using the methodology from Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF). Using the baselines and science-based sectorial pathways, sector-specific emission reduction targets have been developed, showing how Swedbank’s lending portfolio needs to change for the financed emissions to decrease in line with global climate targets.

For mortgages, the target is to reduce the financed emission intensity (kgCO2e/m2) by 39% while the target for commercial real estate is to reduce the financed emission intensity (kgCO2e/m2) by 43%.

In oil & gas (exploration, production and refining), the target is to reduce the absolute financed emissions (tCO2e) by 50% while the goal for power generation is to reduce the financed emission intensity (tCO2e/MWh) by 59%.

The goal for steel is to reduce the financed emission intensity (tCO2e/ton) by 29%.

All targets have been set against a 2019 baseline and were sent to the Science-Based Targets initiative for external validation.