이 기사는 2022년 03월 24일 07:36 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.

South Korea’s Samsung C&T, the construction unit of Samsung Group, is set to be the first ESG (environmental, social and governance) bond issuer among the group’s non-financial affiliates.

Samsung C&T plans to raise up to 500 billion won ($414 million) in a bond issuance in early April, according to industry sources on Monday. The company is double-checking its sales strategies with its sale managers KB Securities and NH Investment & Securities ahead of a book building process.

Samsung C&T plans to raise 200 billion won in bonds with 3-year and 100 billion won in bonds with 5-year maturities. It may increase the offering to up to 500 billion won if it attracts strong demand in its bookbuilding process slated for later this month.

The 3-year bonds will be issued in green bonds. The company is in the process to get its bond certified by a domestic credit rating agency. The agency plans to give the bond an ESG rating as early as this week. This will mark Samsung C&T’s first ESG bond in the company’s history.

The proceeds from the sale of its first ESG bond are expected to be used in eco-friendly construction projects such as solar power, small module nuclear power plant, hydrogen and wind power. Samsung C&T is planning to build solar power generation facilities in Mangilao, Guam and has committed a total investment of $70 million in U.S. nuclear fission technology provider NuScale Power.

If Samsung C&T successfully completes its book building process, it will become the first ESG bond issuer among Samsung Group’s non-financial affiliates. Samsung Card and Samsung Securities are among the group’s affiliates that have sold ESG bonds. Hotel Shilla, Samsung SDI and Samsung Biologics, which regularly raise funds in the domestic corporate bond market, haven’t issued ESG bonds yet.

Samsung Card raised 100 billion won in a sustainable bond issuance in December 2020 and additional 100 billion won in September 2021.

Samsung Securities secured 100 billion won by selling a green bond in February 2021, with the proceeds used to repay debts taken out to fund the U.S. midstream project and the French solar power project. (Reporting by Chul Kang)