KUALA LUMPUR: Boustead Plantations Bhd (BPB) has sealed a RM45 million green financing agreement with China Construction Bank (M) Bhd (CCBM) to facilitate its sustainable replanting exercise as part of its commitment towards environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts.

       BPB, one of Malaysia’s major palm oil companies, seeks to leverage financing to maximise its ongoing accelerated sustainable replanting programme, particularly for its plantation assets in Sabah, from this year until 2024.

       "The green financing agreement would allow BPB to complement its ongoing plantations performance improvement programme by optimising the potential of its plantation assets in Sabah,” its chief executive officer Zainal Abidin Shariff said in a statement today.

       The financing agreement was signed by BPB director Ahmad Shahredzuan Mohd Shariff and its company secretary Affendi Mohd Yob, while CCBM was represented by its executive vice president Wang Shaoqiang.

       Zainal Abidin and CCBM chief executive officer Wang QiJie witnessed the ceremony.

       According to the statement, BPB’s debt-to-equity ratio has improved in recent years owing to its strong financial performance, with gearing at 0.28 times as at March 31, 2022 from Dec 31, 2021's 0.37 times.

       BPB said all its land area comes under the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil certification, while six of its palm mills, certified under the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, have been accredited with the Supply Chain Certification System.

       There is zero burning and its palm biomass is recycled.

       CCBM is a subsidiary of China Construction Bank Corporation, a commercial bank with presence in 31 countries with its headquarters in Beijing. - Bernama