Sustainable financing: FIEGE and Helaba prioritise ESG criteria
FIEGE integrates sustainability into syndicated loan via ‘rendezvous’ clause
The FIEGE Group has successfully added a sustainability component to its existing syndicated loan. The EUR 90 million facility, agreed in February 2023, included a so-called rendezvous clause, which allows the loan margin to be linked retrospectively to specific ESG metrics. Following the exercise of extension options, the loan term runs until 2030.
FIEGE: An overview of figures, facts and business areas
About FIEGE: The FIEGE Group, headquartered in Greven, Westphalia, is one of the most innovative logistics providers in Europe. With 22,000 employees across 139 sites in 14 countries, FIEGE operates internationally – from its core markets in Europe right through to Asia. FIEGE is a fifth-generation family-owned business and is regarded as a pioneer in contract logistics. Modular solutions in the fields of logistics, digital services, real estate and ventures form the core of its business activities. In 2023, the FIEGE Group generated a turnover of two billion euros and has more than 4.5 million square metres of logistics space.
Sustainability-oriented financing: KPI-based cost adjustment
Following the conclusion of the ESG supplementary agreement, the financing costs of the syndicated loan are now also influenced by three so-called Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). These reflect the company’s sustainability performance in the areas of CO2 reduction – both within its own operations (Scope 1 and 2) and across the entire value chain (Scope 3) – and occupational safety. The financing thus addresses key areas of action within the FIEGE Group’s sustainability strategy.
How did the idea arise to implement sustainable financing in the form of an ESG supplementary agreement in collaboration with Helaba, and how do you assess the success of the financing?
Michael Helming, Executive Director of Corporate Finance at FIEGE:
“We held our first discussions with Helaba on the subject of sustainability back in 2021. Given the great importance of this issue for our family-run business, we were very keen from the outset to seek a link between sustainability and financing. However, at that time we were in the process of restructuring our Corporate Sustainability team and had just begun assessing the current situation.
In 2022, Sandra Achternbusch joined us and, as Executive Director of Corporate Sustainability, further developed our sustainability strategy across the group. Over the past three years, thanks to increasingly detailed and wide-ranging data collection, we have become better and better able to assess FIEGE’s impact on sustainability aspects and to outline our desired development path for the future.”
Given the great importance of this issue to our family-run business, we were keen from the outset to seek ways of linking sustainability and finance.
Michael Helming
Executive Director, Corporate Finance, FIEGE
How does the current financing complement FIEGE’s sustainability strategy?
Sandra Achternbusch, Executive Director of Corporate Sustainability at FIEGE:
“Sustainable action and business practices are an integral part of our family-run company’s history, which spans more than 150 years, and are firmly embedded in FIEGE’s DNA. At the same time, it is important to continuously advance the many facets of sustainability and to continually adapt to evolving framework conditions and expectations.
The foundation is our sustainability strategy, which we presented in our first sustainability report in 2023. We then focused on defining KPIs, collecting data and setting medium-term targets. These are the benchmarks against which we intend to be measured in future. Accordingly, incorporating ESG metrics into our financing was a natural step for us.”
90 million
Volume of the syndicated loan with a sustainability component
Sustainable practices and business operations have been an integral part of our family-run business’s history, spanning more than 150 years, and are firmly embedded in FIEGE’s DNA.
Sandra Achternbusch
Executive Director of Corporate Sustainability, FIEGE
What obstacles and challenges did you face during the process, and how did you overcome them together with Helaba?
Sandra Achternbusch, Executive Director of Sustainability at FIEGE:
Thanks to our sustainability report, which includes, amongst other things, the results of our materiality analysis, we had a solid foundation for quickly helping Helaba understand the key areas for action and the greatest potential in terms of sustainability at FIEGE. Whilst we had already collected data for numerous key performance indicators and reported on them accordingly, not all our medium-term targets had yet been finalised. When the financing was finalised in early 2023, we therefore decided to wait before incorporating an ESG component. The agreed rendezvous clause proved very useful in this regard. It gave us the time we needed to work with our colleagues in Finance and Helaba’s Sustainable Finance Advisory team to identify the most suitable key performance indicators and to break down our medium-term targets into concrete, measurable annual interim targets.
The FIEGE Group is very conscious of its responsibility towards the environment and society. We are therefore delighted to have been able to provide FIEGE with extensive support in developing and structuring the ESG component throughout the entire process.
Alexander Rasch
Director of Sustainable Finance Advisory, Helaba
What advice would you give to other companies looking to implement financing with a rendezvous clause?
Sandra Achternbusch, Executive Director of Sustainability at FIEGE:
Although reporting forms the basis for ESG-linked financing and significantly simplifies the process, the effort involved in the final structuring – particularly for debut transactions – should not be underestimated, given the relevant ESG components. Banks not only possess extensive expertise in arranging sustainable financing, but can also draw on a wealth of experience when assessing a sustainability strategy, preparing the relevant reporting and, consequently, establishing the entire sustainability framework. This dialogue can deliver real added value; however, due to requirements that are in some cases fixed and sector-specific KPIs, it may also mean that certain processes within the company need to be reorganised. Particularly when incorporating a sustainability component for the first time, I consider advisory support from an experienced banking partner to be highly beneficial.
Are there any particular impressions regarding the collaboration with Helaba that you would like to share?
Michael Helming:
“From the initial discussions on sustainability right through to the conclusion of the ESG supplementary agreement, we have found Helaba to be a bank that takes the issue of sustainability just as seriously as we do. We received strong support and were able to rely at all times on the comprehensive market and structuring expertise of our contacts in the Sustainable Finance Advisory Team. Furthermore, throughout the entire process, we in the Finance team have gained an even broader understanding of various sustainability aspects, such as sustainability reporting and key sustainability KPIs.”
Sandra Achternbusch:
“We are delighted that, through close and collaborative work with Helaba in its role as ESG coordinator, we have found a way to translate our family-owned company’s sustainability goals into an ambitious sustainability component and successfully integrate this into the financing. Furthermore, we have clearly felt that our entire sustainability organisation has benefited from Helaba’s professional guidance.”
From the initial discussions on sustainability right through to the conclusion of the supplementary ESG agreement, we have found Helaba to be a bank that takes the issue of sustainability just as seriously as we do.
Michael Helming
Executive Director, Corporate Finance, FIEGE
