WebConnect

6 April 2010

 

Infrastructure Development Finance Company Ltd. (IDFC) and IDEAcarbon, the company that instituted ratings of carbon assets, signed a strategic working alliance today to encourage the adoption of ratings of environmental assets by market participants and develop other products to help a structured growth of the Indian carbon market.

IDEAcarbon, that owns The Carbon Rating Agency, is a pioneer in creating efficiency measures for the global carbon market and its alliance with IDFC follows IDEAcarbon’s recently sealed Strategic Alliance with an ICRA group company, ICRA Online, to provide the Indian carbon market participants independent and reliable ratings of carbon assets and in turn help them manage risks. IDEAcarbon’s market collaboration envisaged under its working alliance with IDFC is geared to enhance the market usage of such carbon asset ratings, and develop other market instruments such as CER indices, carbon market related research and educational products, and building carbon trading mechanisms.

IDFC and IDEAcarbon will jointly structure and effect an appropriate corporate structure in India for expanding offerings of IDEAcarbon Companies’ products and services, including setting up of entities in India to cover ratings and other services. Significantly, the collaboration between IDFC and IDEAcarbon envisages IDFC integrating ratings of environmental assets as one of the tools in its appraisal process, marking its proactive efforts in adopting best practices and facilitating a disciplined development of the growing carbon market.

Reiterating the importance of this development, Dr. Rajiv Lall, MD and CEO of IDFC said, “Transparency and benchmarks for risk are essential for an efficient carbon market, for the development of market mechanisms to have an impact on mitigating climate change and managing the low carbon imperative. IDFC’s relationship with IDEAcarbon is a significant enabler for us and the Indian market.”

“We are very pleased to see the leadership being shown by IDFC in the environment and sustainability space in India, and their sound recognition of and endorsement of the tools necessary to cause a significant institutionalization of the carbon and infrastructure markets in India”, said Mr Shandi J. Modi, founder and CEO of IDEAcarbon.

 

About IDFC

Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limitedis a leading infrastructure focused financial institution providing a wide range of financing products and fee based services to infrastructure projects and companies in India. IDFC also works closely with government entities and regulators in India to advise and assist in formulating policy and regulatory frameworks that support private investment and public-private partnerships in infrastructure development in India.
 

About IDEAcarbon and The Carbon Rating Agency

IDEAcarbon, with its head offices in the U.K, is an independent and professional provider of ratings, research and strategic advice on carbon finance. Founded by Shandi Modi, CEO and Ian Johnson, Chair and formerly Vice President of the World Bank, it is part of the IDEAgroup whose advisors include Lord Nick Stern and Nitin Desai. Its services are designed to provide leading financial institutions, corporations, governments, traders and developers with intelligence and analysis of the factors that affect the pricing of carbon market assets. The IDEAcarbon team are leading experts in the carbon and energy markets. They combine policy and financial intelligence with proprietary tools for the analysis of credit risk. Their techniques assist their clients to manage and mitigate risk in today's uncertain global carbon markets. For more information please visit: www.ideacarbon.com

The Carbon Rating Agency is a wholly owned subsidiary of IDEAcarbon. Its mission is to improve the functioning and efficiency of the carbon markets. The Carbon Rating Agency's ratings and opinions are unencumbered and independent - it does not trade, buy, sell or originate carbon credits. Further details of the Carbon Rating Agency’s approach to rating carbon assets are available at www.carbonratingsagency.com

Media Contacts:
Kreab Gavin Anderson 020 7074 1800
ideacarbon@kreabgavinanderson.com
Matt O’Leary
Renfeng Zhao

 

Disclaimer:

All information contained herein has been obtained by IDEAcarbon from sources believed by it to be accurate and reasonable. Although reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the information herein is true, such information is provided ‘as is’ without any warranty of any kind, and IDEAcarbon in particular, makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, timeliness or completeness of any such information. All information contained herein must be construed solely as statements of opinion.