DIC Corporation Enters Into a Sustainability-Linked Loan Agreement

DIC Corporation announced today that it has entered into a sustainability-linked loan (SLL) agreement with The Norinchukin Bank.

An SLL is a loan that encourages borrowers to set ambitious sustainability performance targets (SPTs) that reflect their management strategies and incentivizes them to work toward those SPTs by linking loan conditions to degree of achievement, thereby supporting business activities and growth that are both environmentally and socially sustainable.

DIC has positioned sustainability, including environmental issues, as a principal management priority, and is actively working to expand its portfolio of products and services that contribute to decarbonization with the goal of playing a pivotal role in lowering CO2 emissions across markets and society.

In DIC NET ZERO 2050, published in June 2021 and Long-term management plan “DIC Vision 2030”, the DIC Group revised its targets for the reduction of CO2 emissions.

The Group now aims to achieve carbon neutrality—net zero CO2 emissions—by fiscal year 2050 and will seek to reduce these emissions by 50% from the fiscal year 2013 level by fiscal year 2030.

The Norinchukin Bank promotes a variety of sustainable management initiatives and has committed to providing sustainable finance in the amount of ¥10 trillion by 2030 as one of its medium- to long-term goals announced in May 2021. Seeing affinity with the philosophy of the DIC Group’s sustainability strategy, the bank agreed to extend an SLL to DIC based on its assessment that this loan will contribute to the resolution of climate change–related issues, such as reduction of CO2 emissions.

Recognizing the need to respond to climate change as one of four priority materiality themes, DIC promotes sustainability initiatives targeting both mitigation and adaptation. The company’s target of achieving carbon neutrality by fiscal year 2050 and reducing emissions (Scope 1 and 2) by 50% from the fiscal year 2013 level by fiscal year 2030 has been selected as the SPT for this SLL.