(Credit: Climate First Bank)Climate First Bank financed 2,578.48 kW of renewable energy, which is more than 36,000 tons of CO2 emissions avoided over 25 years, according to Climate First Bank’s first Annual Impact Report.
The report highlights the bank’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives and their measured impact on the climate, community and economy.
Rainforest Action Network found that “since 2016, 35 banks have poured $2.7 trillion into fossil fuels. Big banks have epically failed to respond to the climate crisis.” Climate First Bank aims to help fix this.
Climate First Bank has funded roughly $12 million in loans in 2021 aimed toward businesses focused on mission-aligned sectors, incorporating good business practices and aligning their entity structures for the common good. None of Climate First Bank’s loans went towards financing fossil fuels or other environmentally harmful industries.
Climate First Bank also financed the construction of a new gas station on the condition that a dual EV charging station and a 20kW PV solar system be installed. Per year, this sustainable enhancement saves the gas station an estimated $2,200 in energy costs and the reduction of 1,595 tons of CO2 emissions.
Other banks making sustainable plans include PNC Bank, which signed a 78 MW deal with Constellation to power nearly 50% of its legacy operations in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, District of Columbia, and parts of Illinois with renewable electricity.
Bank of America has also agreed to a 15-year, 160-megawatt deal to purchase power and project-specific renewable energy certificates (REC) from Constellation. The agreement will help Bank of America get renewable energy from the Mammoth Central project being constructed by Doral Renewables in Indiana.
