KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Property
NEV (Holdings) Sdn Bhd’s (SimeProp NEV) Green Finance Framework has received a Gold Impact Assessment from MARC Solutions Sdn Bhd, supporting its RM2.6bil sukuk programme for sustainable digital infrastructure financing.
MARC, in a statement said that the sukuk programme is the world’s first sukuk financing structure dedicated to data centre infrastructure.
The programme will finance eligible green projects, including hyperscale data centres and automated industrial and logistics facilities.
The Green Finance Framework was developed with Maybank Investment Bank Bhd and the Asian Development Bank as joint sustainability structuring advisers.
It is aligned with the International Capital Market Association’s Green Bond Principles, the Asean Capital Markets Forum’s Green Bond Standards and the Securities Commission’s Sustainable and Responsible Investment Sukuk Framework.
MARC Solutions assigned the Gold Impact Assessment after evaluating the framework’s governance, eligible green project categories, management of proceeds, reporting commitments and anticipated environmental impact.
It said the assessment reflects the framework’s strong alignment with recognised market standards and best practices.
Malaysian Rating Corp Bhd group chief executive officer and MARC Solutions executive director Arshad Mohamed Ismail said the sukuk programme marks an important milestone in financing sustainable digital infrastructure in Malaysia.
“As investment in hyperscale data centres and other new economy assets continues to accelerate, it is increasingly important that such financing is underpinned by credible green finance frameworks that promote transparency, accountability and measurable environmental outcomes,” he said.
Arshad added that independent impact assessments provide investors and other stakeholders with greater assurance that green financing frameworks are aligned with internationally recognised standards and incorporate robust governance, clear project selection criteria and meaningful impact reporting.
SimeProp group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Azmir Merican said the company is the first property developer in Malaysia to combine sukuk financing with an institutional real estate private equity structure supported by a Gold-graded Green Finance Framework.
“The RM2.6bil sukuk programme marks a defining milestone in our SHIFT32 transformation, strengthening SimeProp’s position in the rapidly growing new economy sector.
“As the general partner and manager of the NEV Fund, we are creating an institutional investment platform that enables us to develop high-quality build-to-suit assets required by global technology operators programmatically,” he said.
SimeProp NEV, a member of SimeProp’s new economy venture platform, develops institutional-grade, income-generating assets in high-growth sectors.
These include hyperscale data centres and automated industrial and logistics facilities located within the group’s integrated townships.
According to MARC, the sukuk programme demonstrates how Malaysia’s capital market can channel sustainable financing into next-generation digital infrastructure while setting a global benchmark as the world’s first sukuk financing structure dedicated to data centre infrastructure.
