The Iyo Bank (headquartered in Matsuyama City) has been increasing its financing for alternative fuel vessels. Over the past six months, 25% of its ship financing decisions have been allocated to vessels capable of utilizing alternative fuels such as LNG (liquefied natural gas) and methanol, which have lower environmental impacts compared to traditional fuels. The bank is supporting shipowners building such vessels by providing financial assistance.
Photo courtesy= The Iyo Bank
On November 4, Iyogin Holdings, the parent company of Iyo Bank, published materials for its interim financial results for FY2024, which included details on financing for environmentally compliant vessels. Among the ship financing cases decided in the last six months, 64.1% by monetary value were vessels meeting the Phase 3 requirements of the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI). Alternative fuel vessels accounted for 25%, while the remaining 10.9% comprised conventional and second-hand vessels.
Iyo Bank is enhancing its support for customers who are proactive in environmental measures. In October 2023, it signed the Poseidon Principles, an international framework aimed at promoting the decarbonization of shipping through financial means.
As of the end of September 2024, the bank’s outstanding loans to domestic and international shipping operators amounted to ¥1.1248 trillion, a decrease of ¥95 billion from ¥1.1343 trillion at the end of March 2024. The decline was primarily due to scheduled repayments of ¥65.3 billion and early repayments of ¥31.9 billion. New loans executed during this period amounted to ¥92.1 billion, while exchange rate fluctuations had a negative impact of ¥4.4 billion on the outstanding balance.
The average loan balance for the maritime industry during the first half of FY2024 was ¥1.4949 trillion, an increase of ¥111.2 billion from ¥1.3837 trillion in FY2023. Although the balance is expected to decline to ¥1.4797 trillion in the second half of FY2024, it is projected to rise to ¥1.5327 trillion by FY2026.
The return on equity (ROE) for the ship finance division during the first half of FY2024 was 9.3%, exceeding the target level of over 7% based on financial accounting and net assets as set by Iyogin Holdings. In FY2023, the ship finance division’s ROE was 9.1%, or 8.5% excluding the effects of exchange rate fluctuations. The division’s ROE target for FY2026 is set at 8.2%.
〆伊予銀行（The Iyo Bank）の最近６カ月の船舶融資のうち25％が代替燃料船への融資だった
伊予銀行（本店・松山市）が代替燃料船向けの融資を積極化している。過去６カ月間に決定した船舶融資決定のうち、代替燃料船が25％を占めた。海運の脱炭素化に向けて、従来型燃料に比べて環境負荷の低いＬＮＧ（液化天然ガス）やメタノールなどの代替燃料が使用可能な船舶が増えている。伊予銀行は代替燃料船を積極的に建造する船主に対し、金融面から支援していく。
伊予銀行を中核とする「いよぎんホールディングス（Iyogin Holdings）」は４日、２０２４年度中間期決算説明会資料を公表した。その中で環境対応船舶への融資状況などを明らかにした。
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