Impressive end-of-year rebound in 2021 in the midst of the pandemic and the global energy transition
2021 was a changeable year for EKF – initially under the shadow of the pandemic and its stop-start lockdowns and disrupted transactions – and in the second half of the year on the back of an economic upturn, which created impetus and new opportunities for Danish business and industry.
The lower level of activity for Danish export businesses in the first half of 2021 inevitably also impacted EKF Denmark's Export Credit Agency. However, the year closed with a strong rebound in financial performance matching the best on record in EKF's century-long history.
The net profit for the year came in at DKK 548 million with the total number of new guarantees worth DKK 19 billion.
Chair of EKF Denmark's Export Credit Agency, Christian Frigast, was gratified by this result during a turbulent time:
At EKF, we are mindful of our role as partners supporting Danish business exports and internationalisation through the best and worst of times in a highly changeable world. We are partners of choice for our expertise, agility and attractive products. With new guarantees totalling DKK 19 billion in 2021 and aggregate business volume worth DKK 112 billion, we perform a key task daily for the benefit of Danish exporters and Denmark as a whole.
EKF partners with diverse Danish export businesses but had been particularly intent on supporting the boom in Danish wind turbine exports in recent decades. This makes EKF one of the leading green export credit agencies worldwide. More than 70 percent of our transactions today are green. In the past decade alone, we have assisted in financing 120 wind farms, which have mobilised more than DKK 400 billion in private capital.
But our ambitions do not stop there. In 2021, the EKF board adopted a zero-carbon policy targeting climate neutrality for its entire portfolio by 2045. This is ambitious, but aligns with our mission to not merely keep up with our customers in making the energy transition, but to be proactive catalysts in Denmark and globally. In concrete terms, our commitment to financing green projects amounts to DKK 200 billion by 2030.
Our goal is to help grow the Danish economy and green the globe. We are committed to driving the shift away from fossil fuels in partnership with businesses and to assist them in their energy transition. We will help to ensure that Denmark retains its lead position in the wind sector, and platform a similar position for Denmark within new green technologies. Meanwhile, we will also be supporting Danish businesses across a broad front, commented Christian Frigast, Chair of EKF Denmark's Export Credit Agency.
EKF Denmark's Export Credit Agency's Annual Report 2021 is available to read at EKF.dk (in Danish). Contact with Christian Frigast may be made via Press Officer Kim Bove, email: kib@ekf.dk, mobile: +45 22 27 38 93.
