Standard Chartered closes US$200m Clean Cooking Outcome Bond

Standard Chartered has announced its role as the sole lead manager and bookrunner for a US$200million outcome bond with returns linked to carbon credits generated under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement.

The bond will unlock US$30.5million to finance the deployment of 415,000 cleaner cooking devices in Ghana between 2025 and 2028, distributed by UpEnergy. The cookstoves are expected to reduce emissions by replacing fuel-inefficient cooking methods with electric cookstoves (EC) for households with grid access and improved cookstoves (ICS) for households still dependent on biomass for daily cooking needs.

This bond is issued by the World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development – IBRD) and is the first example of an outcome bond with coupon returns linked to Article 6.2. It supports carbon-linked mitigation outcomes, representing a model for mobilising private capital at scale into projects that deliver high-integrity emissions reductions alongside health and social outcomes.

The electric cookstoves will help deliver benefits to people and communities in Ghana by addressing severe household air pollution (HAP), which is linked to the premature death of 28,000 people every year – primarily women and children.

In addition, the project will help lower household energy costs and reduce time spent collecting fuel.

Reduced emissions from the projects will be quantified and verified to create carbon credits. The credits will be issued under Article 6.2 and are referred to as internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs).

They will be purchased by the KliK Foundation. The carbon revenues are helping to subsidise efficient cooking devices to households in Ghana that can benefit from it most. The ITMOs, minus the overall mitigation in global emissions (OMGE) contribution levied by Switzerland, will be issued to the KliK Foundation’s account in the Swiss Emissions Trading Registry.

They will be used by the KliK Foundation to fulfil its obligation under the Swiss CO? Act. Switzerland will retire these ITMOs against its target under the Paris Agreement nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Henrik Raber, Global Head-Global Banking at Standard Chartered said: “We’re proud to partner with the World Bank and UpEnergy to deliver the first Clean Cooking Outcome Bond. This bond underscores the power of our global network, alongside our capital markets, structuring, carbon and commodities markets expertise. The US$200million size for the outcome bond and diverse investor base from four different regions across our footprint is testament to the success of this innovative transaction”.

“This outcome bond demonstrates strong investor demand for impact and leverages private capital directly into solutions that improve lives. By linking returns to verified project outcomes, we help mobilise finance at scale and channel resources where they deliver immediate impact – clean cooking solutions for families in Ghana,” said Jorge Familiar, World Bank Vice President and Treasurer-World Bank Group.

Marisa Drew, Chief Sustainability Officer at Standard Chartered said: “Scaling private capital through Article 6.2 is critical across our markets – and especially Africa – because it transforms climate ambition into investable opportunity, unlocking the finance needed to build resilient and thriving communities and accelerate access to clean energy.

“We’re pleased to leverage our carbon market expertise to help deliver the carbon market’s full potential and support long-term adoption of clean cooking technologies.”

Funding will be disbursed in four milestone-linked tranches, ensuring transparency and integrity at every stage. The cookstoves will be distributed by UpEnergy, a carbon project developer working across Africa. UpEnergy has expertise in deploying cookstoves tailored to the needs of households, considering affordability and access to electricity.

Mitch Sauers, CEO-UpEnergy said: “This milestone demonstrates how outcome-based finance and Article 6 cooperation can accelerate and scale access to modern cooking that delivers measurable climate impact, better indoor air quality and creates local jobs and economic activity. We value the partnership shown by the governments of Ghana and Switzerland and the World Bank Group – and appreciate Standard Chartered’s role in structuring the transaction and bringing it to market”.

The US$200million, 6-year Clean Cooking Outcome Bond has full principal protection from IBRD. The bond combines a fixed coupon from IBRD with a variable coupon linked to the generation and sale of ITMOs.

By linking investor returns to the generation and offtake of verified emissions reductions, the Clean Cooking Outcome Bond demonstrates how Article 6.2 mechanisms can be used to effectively mobilise private capital for strategic projects in their host countries.

Globally, around 2.1 billion people rely heavily on traditional solid biomass fuels (SBFs) such as wood and charcoal for household cooking through inefficient cooking devices, which is the leading cause of severe household air pollution (HAP) and environmental degradation.

Around 75 percent of Ghanaians (roughly 26 million), mostly in rural and low-income urban areas, use SBFs for cooking, with 31.1 percent and 23.3 percent of households using wood and charcoal respectively.

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