The EU attracted strong demand from investors for its inaugural green bond on Tuesday, as Brussels kicked off its efforts to become the world’s biggest issuer of sustainable debt.
The €12bn sale of 15-year debt attracted more than €135bn of orders, and marked the largest green bond deal, narrowly eclipsing the UK’s ￡10bn debut last month. The sale comes as Europe continues to battle an energy crunch, serving to illustrate a growing need for diverse and renewable sources of power.
Tuesday’s issue is the first of an expected €250bn of the European Commission green bonds, making up about a third of the bloc’s €800bn Covid-19 recovery fund. The proceeds will be passed on to member states to be spent on areas such as energy efficiency, transport and nature protection.