Subscription

To address severe air, water, and land pollution across the PRC, the country''s 13th Five-Year Plan, (2016-2020) calls for more stringent environmental protection measures and a supportive regulatory framework for renewables. In response, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has focused its business development efforts in the PRC on environmental infrastructure. Through ongoing discussions with stakeholders, the project team has identified emerging market demand for ADB to support the environmental infrastructure arms of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in accessing international capital markets by strengthening corporate governance and environmental management systems. This facilitates SOE reform and enhances transparency.

The project will facilitate the spin-off listing of China Everbright Greentech Limited (CEGL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Everbright International Limited (CEIL) to support agricultural waste-to-energy and management of hazardous waste across the PRC. 28% of shares of CEGL will be floated on the Hong Kong stock exchange, with CEIL remaining the largest indirect shareholder after the initial public offering. ADB will support this initial public offering as a cornerstone investor.

By supporting environmental sustainability, the project directly addresses key development goals of ADB's country partnership strategy for the PRC, and aligns with the strategy''s sector priority of pollution control. Environmental sustainability will continue to be a major strategic objective of ADB support to the PRC, as will the PRC's delivery of environmental, regional, and global public goods. The project strongly complements ADB's East Asia Department's on-going initiatives in pollution mitigation projects.

The project is consistent with ADB's Energy Policy. Under the policy, ADB's investments will focus on renewable energy projects, as well as expansion of energy access. The policy states that support for renewable energy projects will be prioritized and broadened, with an objective to create a framework that makes investing in renewable energy commercially viable. The policy envisages that, in the process of facilitating direct private sector investments in renewable energy, ADB will assume greater risks and act as a catalyst for investments that the private sector might not otherwise be willing to make.