RESPONSIBLE FINANCE
Corporate Responsibility Report 2008
32
In 2008, BBVA has taken a major step forward
regarding its commitment to responsible risk
management and has drafted a new procedure
called “Handbook on social and environmental
risk management in financing and bank
guarantees”. The aim of this manual is to address
all kinds of operations, from SMEs in Spain
through to major operations in Project Finance.
This handbook has been approved in February
2009 by the Technical Operations Committee, as
well as by the Board’s Risk Committee, and will
be of mandatory application throughout the entire
BBVA Group.
Along these same lines, 2008 has witnessed a
number of different activities:
• Course on changes in environmental
legislation, analysing the main implications
of Spain’s Environmental Liability Act, case
studies, systems for assessing the damage
caused, the use of financial guarantees,
sectors most affected by the law, financial
appraisal of environmental damage, the
experience of the first legal proceedings filed
under the new regulations and the different
positions adopted by the Public
Administrations regarding the new Air
Quality Act.
• Seminar “The Regulatory Development of the
Environmental Liability Act”, on financial
guarantees and environmental risk assessment,
which covered the following topics:
– Environmental risk assessment reports
(MIRAT) and calculating the cover of the
financial guarantee
– Presentation and verification of MIRAT pilot
projects
Deployment has been made of a network of
experts dedicated to environmental matters and
training has been given to six analysts in Social
and Environmental Risk Management in Spain,
Chile and Peru through the virtual coaching
programme “Social and Environmental Risk
Assessment”.
In addition, with a view to reinforcing this
commitment an Environmental Risk department
has been set up in BBVA Banco Continental (Peru).
LARGE
COMPANIES
AND PROJECT
FINANCE
Other
energies
19%
Renewable
energies
34%
The management of social
and environmental risk in
the financing of large
projects is a matter of vital
importance for BBVA as an
institution dedicated to the provision of financial
services. The BBVA Group seeks to contribute to
financing the building of infrastructures designed
to improve people’s quality of life, but without
neglecting either the environment or society
itself. Accordingly, since 2004 BBVA has adhered
to the Equator Principles, undertaking to assess
and consider the social and environmental risks
of the projects it finances in developing
countries.
Since 2006, BBVA has eliminated the limit on
the amount for the analysis of projects according
to the Equator Principles, with this study now
being applied to all project finance transactions.
Furthermore, in 2008 and in addition to the
products of Project Finance, it was agreed to
extend the application of the Equator Principles to
bridge finance linked to projects and the German
Method (lump sum toll road contract payment).
One Project Finance operation was rejected
in 2008 for failing to comply with the Equator
Principles.
More information at:
www.equator-principles.com
Classification of projects according
to the Equator Principles
Infraestructures
15%
Other
32%
Scope: BBVA Group
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