Managing Sustainable Development

The high-level Sustainability Committee was established in July 2023, constituting a significant milestone representing the institution’s overarching commitment to sustainable development in Eurasia and with its member states.

The Committee constitutes the main executive leadership forum dedicated to advancing the Bank’s Sustainability Strategy, exercising effective stewardship and oversight at the highest governance level. The Committee enables faster decision-making and resolution of material issues intrinsically part of the realm of responsible development, and with the coordination of collaborative work and collegial discussion of the Bank’s key areas.

The Sustainability Committee is chaired and overseen by Nikolai Podguzov, Chairman of the Management Board, and the position of Vice-Chairman of the Committee is held by Conrad Albrecht, Managing Director and Head of the Directorate of Sustainability. This consists of permanent decision-makers at Board level, heads of divisions and invited specialists, contributing to enriching the debate and to addressing strategic cross-functional objectives. The interdisciplinary and functional Working Group drives and facilitates execution of projects, activities and action plans, with due responsibility and a sense of ownership.

The Sustainability Committee's objectives are directly related to the national strategies of the Bank's member countries, sectors of the economy, as well as sustainability-orientated projects and social financing. These include:

The Committee has established a minimum threshold of two sessions per calendar year to maintain its regularity and continuity in addressing the continued progress of the sustainability agenda. The Committee ensures availability of a consistent platform for deliberation and decision-making on a diverse range of topics. It also has the flexibility and dynamism to convene additional sessions throughout the year, at the frequency deemed necessary.

The latest EDB Sustainability Committee meeting (press-release)

Regulations on the Sustainability Committee are publicly available in both Russian and English.

Regulations on the Sustainability Committee

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The EDB promotes low-carbon development in its member countries and endeavours to track the climate effects of both its own operations and investments. The Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Energy Consumption Data Book is publicly available in both Russian and English. 

In 2023, the Bank calculated direct (Scope 1), indirect energy-related (Scope 2), and other indirect (Scope 3) GHG emissions for the first time. The Bank has also estimated the positive climate effects of financed projects, namely the amount of emissions avoided and reduced (Scope 4). The quantification of direct and indirect emissions was carried out as per the GHG Protocol and The Global GHG Accounting & Reporting for the Financial Industry Standard (PCAF) methodologies. To calculate avoided and reduced emissions, the international approaches The Avoided Emissions Framework and Estimating and Reporting the Comparative Emissions Impact of Products were used.

Financed emission inventories cover 100% of the Bank's investment portfolio and reflect gases under the Kyoto Protocol: CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, as well as other greenhouse gases accounted for by borrowers, in CO₂-eq. Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions were calculated for all of the Bank's assets, including leased ones. Scope 3 GHG emissions were calculated for Category 5 (waste generation), Category 6 (business trips), Category 7 (employee commuting emissions) and Category 15 (investment emissions). The weighted data quality score for scope 3 is 5 for project finance (including most carbon-intensive sectors) and 2.7 for securities. To calculate emissions from employee travel, a Bank-wide survey of employees regarding transport in use was conducted for the first time, covering all offices in the EDB's countries of operations. In estimating GHG emissions from investment, emissions from holding securities of companies and countries, as well as from project financing, were taken into account. The volume of reduced and avoided greenhouse gas emissions demonstrates positive climate impact of the EDB's portfolio of green projects.

The EDB intends to assess and publish data on greenhouse gas emissions annually, as well as improving approaches to data collection for calculating emissions, and the quality and scope of disclosure of information related to climate impact. Accuracy, completeness and comparability of data on greenhouse gas emissions will help in managing the carbon intensity of the investment portfolio, set emission reduction targets and assess exposure to climate risks.

DataBook for GHG Emissions and Energy 2020-2023

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