First introduced in July 2022, the SLFF is a key component of STT GDC's Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) strategy. This framework facilitates the structuring of STT GDC's financing, where applicable, in the form of Sustainability-Linked Financing Transactions (SLFTs) including, but not limited to, Sustainability-Linked Bonds (SLBs) including Sustainability-linked Perpetuals (SLPs), and Sustainability-Linked Loans (SLLs). The company successfully issued the first-ever Sustainability-Linked perpetual securities in Asia under this framework in January 2024.
The enhanced SLFF demonstrates the company's dedication to more ambitious sustainability goals and upholds STT GDC's sustainability commitments with stringent Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Sustainability Performance Targets (SPTs), ensuring advancement of mid-to long-term sustainability goals. The SLFF was given the independent tick of approval from ESG ratings company Sustainalytics who provided Second Party Opinion services for the project.
Significant enhancements have been made to the inaugural 2022 framework, advancing our sustainability efforts across three key targets:
Renewable Energy: Increase the use of renewable energy to 85% by 2028.
Carbon Intensity: Achieve a 70% reduction in carbon intensity from the 2021 baseline by 2028.
Green Data Centres: Expand the proportion of green data centres to 65% by 2028.
In addition, the scope of the SLFF has been broadened to include STT GDC's subsidiaries in all our geographies. This expansion reflects our ongoing efforts to ensure that our sustainability commitments are integrated across all operations globally, reinforcing our role as a leader in promoting sustainable practices within the data centre industry.
"Sustainability remains a priority for STT GDC, and the refined Sustainability-Linked Financing Framework demonstrates our unwavering commitment to achieving carbon-neutrality in our operations by 2030 and reinforces our position as a leader in driving positive change within the data centre industry. This framework is essential to our strategy, aligning our financial practices with our deep commitment to sustainability as we continue to drive growth responsibly in the burgeoning global digital economy," said Bruno Lopez, President and Group Chief Executive Officer, ST Telemedia Global Data Centres.
