The FINANCIAL — More than USD 7 million will be spent on the renovation of ProCredit Bank branches throughout Georgia in 2013.
To be greener and more eco-oriented, the Environmental Management Unit at ProCredit Bank is to finance Lagodekhi National Reserve and raise awareness of Green Business among its customers as well as the business sector. ProCredit Bank is the only bank in Georgia which has an Environmental Management Unit.
“Energy efficiency is one of the strategies of ProCredit Bank and is not just a part of our projects,” said Nato Bochorishvili, Head of Marketing Department at ProCredit Bank. “Caring for the environment is the driving force of all the initiatives the Bank is implementing. We have divided our energy efficiency strategy into three directions. The first direction is caring about our internal environment. We want our employees to contribute to protecting the environment and to be highly qualified in energy efficiency issues. The second direction is evaluating ecological risks before financing certain projects. We do not finance projects that damage the environment, but we do finance projects that will have a positive impact on the environment. For example, if a factory wants to buy filters we finance it because we know that the factory will then pollute the environment less than it otherwise would. And the third direction is our Eco Loan, which is available to private and business clients,” she added.
The Eco Loan for businesses is designed to help businesses improve energy efficiency, increase competitiveness and reduce the negative impact they might have on the environment, according to ProCredit Bank representatives. One of the benefits of the Eco Loan is that it can help businesses reduce operating costs and become more competitive.
ProCredit Bank is the only bank in Georgia which has an Environmental Management Unit. “Lower energy costs mean lower business expenses, improved efficiency and increased quality of production as well as reduced negative impact on the environment. The Eco Loan for businesses can be used for production processes, for example replacing old machines or equipment or purchasing additional machines or equipment. It can be used for applying thermal insulation to external walls, ceilings, floors and installing double glazed windows or doors. It can be used for electrical equipment, for recycling (introducing a recycling system or other measures to protect the environment), as well as for renewable energy sources,” Ioseb Rostomashvili, Head of Environmental Management Unit said.
As for the Eco Loan for private individuals, it is designed to take conscious steps to upgrade heating and lighting systems in the home, improve insulation of the building and replace old home appliances with more energy-efficient ones, which will help the whole household to become more energy efficient.
“The benefits in this case are creating a more comfortable living environment and reducing utility bills. The Eco Loan for private individuals can be used for insulation, heating systems, air-conditioning systems, lighting systems, appliances, and renewable energy systems,” Rostomashvili said.
As the Head of the Environmental Management Unit said, the demand for Eco Loans should increase as there is more focus on the agro direction in spring.
“We started issuing Eco Loans first of all to private clients in August of 2012 in Tbilisi and then from January we started financing business and private clients all over Georgia. Our portfolio for both private and business clients reaches USD 1 million already at this time. As the renovation season is coming and agro direction is becoming more active in spring-summer we expect to see an increase in the demand for Eco Loans. We started from zero and nowadays our agro credit portfolio consists of USD 30 million. ProCredit Bank sees an upward trend in this direction,” he added.
Within the framework of environmental protection and green activities ProCredit Bank has been the financial supporter of Lagodekhi National Reserve already for three years. It is ProCredit Bank’s employees that were responsible for cleaning up the territory and stationing rubbish bins throughout the area. All our staff members are actively involved in promoting Green Business in Georgia.
“We hold eco presentations for the companies that are interested in the green direction in general. On the last Friday of every month “come and see” tours are organized, were we host business representatives in the newly built head office of ProCredit Bank where our professionals share with them the Bank’s experience in the green and eco fields,” said Bochorishvili.
As a socially responsible institution, ProCredit Bank used environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient materials in the construction of its head office on Al. Kazbegi Avenue 21. Designed by a German architect and built in accordance with the highest German construction standards, this building benefits from natural light, thus contributing to significantly lower levels of energy consumption. At the same time, modern insulation technology helps to minimise heat loss.
“This certainly required a larger financial investment; however, it has helped to ensure the efficient use of energy resources and reduce the detrimental impact on the environment in the long term, We prefer to spend more today to save in the future said Ioseb Rostomashvili.
“We have bike parking for our employees which is a novelty in Georgia.. Our environment-friendly policy is not only related to cost savings. We are aiming for three results overall: a positive impact on the environment comfort – environment friendly technologies are a guarantee of comfort;; and the third result is – reducing energy costs . By using less energy resources, less CO2 is emitted in to the atmosphere,” he said.
Financially, 2012 was in general a successful year for ProCredit Bank Georgia. The Bank’s total assets increased by 8.3% (GEL 80.9 million) to GEL 1.05 billion (USD 635.5 million).
The total loan portfolio grew by 7% (GEL 47.5 million) to GEL 728 million (USD 439.5 million), mainly due to increased lending to business clients. The share of the portfolio at risk (PAR > 30 days) in the portfolio was only 2.1%, compared to an average of 5.6% in the wider Georgian banking sector.
Total customer funds increased by 4% (GEL 19.9 million) to GEL 525 million (USD 317.2 million). In the last quarter of 2012, the Bank significantly improved the conditions for savings accounts, resulting in increased demand from private clients.
The Bank’s capital grew by 10.4% (GEL 13.7 million) to GEL 145.3 million (USD 87.7 million).The Bank maintained very solid and conservative liquidity reserves throughout the year, and the liquidity ratio had actually improved to 38.9% by the end of the year (31.6% as of 2011) as defined by NBG.
Net profit amounted to GEL 22 million (USD 13 million), up by 10% compared to the previous year, mostly due to effective cost management and increases in income from interest and fees.
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