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cubic meters of gas to Ukraine were reserved (Slovakia – 32.187mn cubic metres, Hungary – 9.267mn cubic metres, and Poland – 4.269mn cubic metres) of the existing 66mn cubic metres of capacities on the western border. The average daily gas imports by Ukraine in May 2018 amounted to 36.5mn cubic metres, in May 2017 – 38.4mn cubic metres, and in May 2016 – 3.1mn cubic metres.
2.1 RZD to issue green bonds
State rail monopoly Russian Railways (RZD) is preparing to issue euro- denominated "green bonds", making it the first blue chip issuer to use the instrument, Vedomosti daily reported on May 8 citing the investor prospect for the placement.
This month the Russian government has adopted a support scheme for bonds issued to finance investment in renewable and environmentally friendly technologies, or the so-called "green bonds", as part of the Ecology national project that is one of 12 programmes designed to “transform” the economy. RZD is now preparing to issue green bonds of 7 to 10 years for an undisclosed amount, organised by JP Morgan, UniCredit, and Russia’s VTB Capital, with investor meetings planned in London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, and Munich. The company plans to use the funds raised to acquire electric locomotives for both cargo and passenger transportation.
Companies issuing the bonds and meeting a number of localisation criteria would be able to get from 70% to 90% of the coupon payments on the bonds rebated by the state. A total of RUB9.3bn ($142mn) is granted for the programme by 2021, with the bond placements to be capped at RUB30bn.
BCS Global Markets commented to Vedomosti that issuing green bonds will allow RZD to diversify the investor pool, as many foreign funds have limitations in terms of ecologic compliance for the investment projects.
RZD is an active borrower, and as of end of 2018, 33% of its loan portfolio was made up of Eurobonds placements. The last Eurobond issue was placed in April 2019 for RUB20bn, maturing in 2025 and carrying a coupon of 8.8%.
Discounting green bonds makes only a part of a larger ecologic drive undertaken by the government. As detailed by bne IntelliNews, in the planned
9 RUSSIA Country Report June 2019 www.intellinews.com
