Green and sustainable finance are financing activities to support the transition to a more resilient and sustainability economy. The need to mobilise green and sustainable financing is growing at a rapid pace as regulators, governments, and investors are committed to spending capital on renewable assets and transitioning to net zero by 2050.  Addressing climate change requires significant funding and investment especially as ESG regulation continues to emerge and develop which requires all facets of society and business to transition to a greener future.

AIB has a clear focus on sustainability and it is exciting to be part of a company leading the way in its field, focusing on financing that will have a positive impact. Our €30bn Climate Action Fund is actively supporting our customers with €15.1bn of green and transition finance deployed since the fund launched in 2019 including €3.5bn to September 2024. This year, we established a Climate Capital segment to deploy significant additional funding towards renewable energy and sustainable infrastructure projects, both nationally and internationally. About half of all new mortgages that we provide are to energy efficient homes and approximately 35% of all of our new lending is green or transition. Our ambition is for that to become 70% by 2030. That’s a pretty unique ambition in banking and we are very proud of the fact that we are well on our way there. We’re also focused on our own operations too - AIB purchases renewable power from solar farms in Gorey and Macallian, Wexford, which generate approximately 21.4 GWh of clean renewable electricity annually, creating additional capacity for the national grid and helping AIB to meet its commitment to ensure 100% of its power requirements will come from certified renewable sources by 2030. Both farms are part of AIB’s virtual Corporate Power Purchase Agreement with NTR to source energy generated following NTR’s construction of the solar farms.

I have always had a keen interest in environmental issues and I was very fortunate that early on in my career in banking I had the opportunity to be involved in the financing of onshore Irish wind farms just as they were becoming more commercially viable which was a great learning curve for me.  Being able to support these renewable energy projects gave me a sense of personal fulfilment and it also made me realise I could combine both a role in banking and a desire to support the Green agenda as I understood the importance of sustainable finance which ultimately gets these projects built and operational. 

AIB supports a large scale UK offshore wind farm that is currently under construction and when completed will be the world's largest offshore wind farm, capable of powering 6 million homes annually.  I manage that banking relationship and it is exciting to monitor progress on such a large scale project being built 130 km off the coastline and to work with them as they manage lots of logistical challenges that come with that. I look forward to bringing this experience to Irish offshore wind projects.

The key challenges in keeping up with the pace of growth in green and sustainable financing are broad as there are many stakeholders involved in the delivery of the green agenda, and on a global scale. The skill set needed across the industry is multifaceted requiring investors, banks, advisors (legal, technical, insurance), engineers, regulators etc. to keep pace with the growth to achieve net zero.  Therefore, it’s important that STEM continues to be an important part of the curriculum in our schools and ensuring there is an awareness amongst young people entering the work force of the enormous potential and opportunity in this area.

In terms of skills, we look for people who are critical thinkers and eager to learn in a fasting moving industry. Sustainable finance roles typically require people to wear multiple “hats” and be able to navigate between financial, technical and legal due diligence. More broadly, a key factor is having a genuine interest in the renewable and social infrastructure sectors.