On March 16, the Shanghai Stock Exchange ("SSE") officially issued the Circular on Carrying out the Pilot Program of Green Corporate Bonds (the "Circular"), stating that the SSE will set up green channels for the declaration, acceptance and examination of green corporate bonds, to improve the efficiency of the pre-examination and confirmation of conditions regarding the listing of green corporate bonds.
The green corporate bonds referred to in the Circular refer to those corporate bonds issued in accordance with the Administrative Measures for Corporate Bonds and the relevant rules, with proceeds therefrom to be used to support green industries. The Catalogue of Projects Supported by Green Bonds (2015) issued on the same date covers energy conservation, pollution control, resource conservation and recycling, clean transportation, clean energy, ecological protection, adaptation to climate changes and other categories, subject to dynamic adjustment according to actual situations.
The Circular, incorporating important principles of international standards for green bonds, and fully adopting the views of domestic and foreign experts in the field of green finance, puts forward requirements for the use of proceeds from green corporate bonds and information disclosure, and meanwhile encourages third-party professional organizations to authenticate the green nature of such bonds, to ensure that the proceeds therefrom are invested in green industries.