National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) Group, the Kingdom’s first privately-owned bank has announced a new initiative to install solar panels in selected (NBB) and Bahrain Islamic Bank (BisB) branches around the country.
The NBB group has been working to enforce its commitment to implement environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles across its operations.
The new initiative, which is set to launch in the first quarter of 2022, will see solar panels installed at four branches, including NBB’s Istiqlal and Riffa Souq regions, as well as BisB’s Hamad Town and Arad branches, and will take six months to complete.
The installed panels have a total capacity of 373 KW, generating a total of 605,700 kWh of energy per year and saving up to 65 percent of power at some of the branches. This will help to reduce the Group’s overall carbon footprint by approximately 300 tons per year while also cutting energy usage expenditures.
Haytham Seyadi Head of Property, Procurement and Administration, NBB Group
“Environmental responsibility is a critical part of our strategy and has become deeply embedded into our culture, in line with our ongoing endeavors to operate more responsibly across the Group. Our efforts extend beyond the financial aspect as a bank, and today we are taking active steps towards preserving the environment. As the leading banking Group in the Kingdom, we consider it our duty to increase awareness on ESG and lead by example as we maintain our focus on customer-centricity in all its forms.”
NBB Group aims to raise awareness about the use of solar-powered systems, which extracts clean, pure energy from the sun, and to reduce reliance on energy provided by coal, natural gas, and fossil fuels, which are the major cause of air and water pollution, exposing human life in danger.
Last month, NBB announced the formation of its new Sustainability Committee, a natural next step to effectively adopt ESG measures, composed of individuals with the ability to monitor, manage and address topics related to sustainability and responsible banking.
