Bank of China plans more green loans

BEIJING - Bank of China (BOC), one of the country's biggest lenders, has pledged to boost credit support for green projects in the 2021-2025 period.

The bank will provide at least 1 trillion yuan (about $154.2 billion) of funds for the green industry during the period, according to an action plan made by the BOC to serve China's carbon peak and neutrality goals.

The share of green loans in the bank's overall domestic corporate loans will rise by no less than 5 percentage points from the end of 2020, the plan noted.

As of the end of June, the BOC saw its domestic outstanding green loans exceed 1 trillion yuan, up over 15 percent from the beginning of this year, a much faster pace than the bank's average loan growth.

Starting from the fourth quarter of 2021, the BOC will no longer provide financing for new coal mines or coal-fired power projects overseas, except for those projects that have already been signed, according to the bank's plan.

China has vowed to peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. It recently pledged to stop building new coal-fired projects overseas.