NIB finances Lidl’s green buildings in Sweden

NIB and Lidl Sverige have signed a loan agreement of SEK 500 million (EUR 47 million) to finance the construction new BREEAM Excellent certified stores, headquarters and logistics operations in Sweden.

Lidl Sverige is implementing a number of sustainability initiatives for improving the energy efficiency of its operations, which include carbon neutral transportation, waste management and investments in environmentally-friendly buildings.

The ten-year loan from NIB will finance the construction of Sweden’s first Zero-CO2 store in Visby, Gotland, which is a common pilot project of Lidl and the Sweden Green Building Council (SGBC). Zero-CO2 is a new green building standard for climate-neutral buildings that aim to become CO2 neutral over the course of their life cycle.

The new Lidl store in Visby will have energy efficient lighting and heating, which will include the recycling of waste heat, as well as solar panels on the roof, eco-zones for insects and birds, and charging stations for electric cars and bikes.

In addition, the loan will partly finance the construction of Lidl Sverige’s new headquarters and an adjacent store in Barkarby, Stockholm. Construction is ongoing and is scheduled for completion during autumn 2020.

Further, the loan finances in part the construction of Lidl’s new greenfield warehouse in Örebro, which was completed in October 2019. The new logistic centre contributes to a capacity increase in logistics operations, and allows for optimizing the flow of goods, reducing the retailer’s total environmental impact.
The buildings are all certified under the BREEAM Excellent standard for environmental buildings.

Lidl is an international supermarket chain with approximately 10,800 stores in 29 countries. In Sweden, Lidl currently operates over 190 branches and employs about 4,200 people. The chain is part of the Germany-based Schwarz Group.

NIB is an international financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden. The Bank finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.

For further information, please contact

Mr Nicolas Audibert, Director, Origination, at +358 10 618 0689, nicolas.audibert@nib.int  

Ms Lisa-Maria Altenberger, Communications Unit, at +358 10 618 0234, lisa-maria.altenberger@nib.int