Welcome to EKN Magazine. We provide inspiration and offer tips for companies and banks that work with exports or have just begun that journey out in the world.
Scania drives the green transition by developing innovative, sustainable transport solutions that pave the way for a cleaner future.
Scania drives the transition together with EKN
EKN clarifies the role of export credits in driving sustainable growth and climate action at COP29.
EKN demystifies export credits at COP29
EKN helps Volvo Construction Equipment mitigate risk across the entire value chain. “Responsible sales are good for business.”
Lower risk – better business
Northern Sweden’s green energy surplus attracts industries in green value chains, with EKN’s green guarantees enhancing deals.
Green gold under the midnight sun
The clean energy shift needs more mining, often seen as unsustainable. Automation helps, but investor support remains key, experts say.
Green transition requires increased mining
A telecom deal aims to bring digital connectivity to remote Africa as part of the EU’s Global Gateway initiative.
Flagship project strengthens digital inclusion in Africa
Lena Bertilsson on export finance and Swedish exporters enabling the energy transition. “Funding on a scale not seen in a long time”.
Empowering export finance for the energy transition
Swedish greentech suppliers and EKN may help fund and realise one of the world’s most ambitious energy transition programmes.
Türkiye goes green in record time
EKN was awarded “ECA Of The Year” and the deal behind the massive 5G rollout in India was recognized as one of the ten “Best Deals of 2024”.
EKN scores a double at GTR Awards
Electric transport is about much more than cars and buses. Here’s how global rail giants transform railroading into a high-tech mode of transport – and a Swedish export success – capable of replacing fossil-fuelled airplanes and vehicles.
Railway to the future
State-backed guarantees are becoming a key tool in funding the bill for reinforcing European defence capabilities.
Export finance poised to play a bigger role in European rearmament
David meets Goliath in a race for innovations where everyone’s a winner: Leading Swedish truck exporters Scania and Volvo share their advice on how to successfully embrace the startup community.
Large corporates take on the future with tech startups
Are the expanded financing opportunities permitted by the updated OECD Arrangement living up to high expectations? It may take time, experts say.
Learning to love longer tenors
To deliver more sustainable global trade, eight leading ECAs unveiled a new net-zero alliance in Dubai. “Public finance has been the missing piece in the net-zero financial landscape,” commented a UN source.
Trade takes centre stage at COP28
A successful net-zero transition relies heavily on strategic metals and minerals. How can export finance help boost supply and ensure sustainable mining practices?
Metals demand seen rising by 500%
The OECD Country Risk Assessment Methodology ultimately determines the minimum premium rate that state-backed export credit insurers can charge. Now, it has been revised to reflect a stronger focus on governance and institutional factors, and the consequences of climate change.
OECD updates country risk assessment model
Carl Mellander, CFO at the world’s biggest 5G technology provider Ericsson says export financing is a crucial counter-cyclical tool.
The secrets behind 5G leadership
In the largest private deal ever supported by EKN, Ericsson delivers equipment worth over USD 2 billion for the rollout of 5G technology across India.
Record deal behind record-time 5G rollout in India
The energy transition has triggered a boom in demand for power cables that can transport the green energy harvested by solar and wind farms over long distances. The drive to renew and connect national grids further fuel demand at cable maker NKT, with major export production in Sweden and guarantees from EKN.
Swedish cables connect a greener future
Hailed as a “complete game changer for the export finance sector”, the OECD reform of the Arrangement on officially supported export credits improves flexibility, particularly in the financing of climate-related projects.
OECD launches “landmark modernisation” of export credits
The battle against climate change is won or lost in Asia and the Pacific. New and innovative blended financing schemes involving multiple institutions and greentech from leading suppliers hold the key.
Regional development banks crucial in funding climate action
Despite its sites being attacked by Russian forces, truck maker Scania decided to remain present in Ukraine. “Logistics is crucial to a country at war,” says Håkan Jyde, Managing Director Scania Ukraine.
Keeping Ukraine on the move
To stimulate green investments at home and abroad, EKN and Riksgälden offer new and attractive guarantees with higher risk cover, while SEK offers financing and funding.
New guarantees to boost green lending
The new Green Export Credit Guarantee from EKN offers up to 100 percent risk cover for exports to projects that comply with the EU taxonomy.
Up to 100% risk cover with new green guarantee
The war in Ukraine has triggered a reassessment of defence spending in financial and political circles. How can export finance contribute?
In defence of defence
Some countries in Sub-Saharan Africa may face debt restructuring as public finances suffer from a stronger dollar and higher import bills. EKN monitors the development closely and foresees a heightened interest in securing risk cover on private risk in an uncertain environment.
All eyes on African debt
“Navigating turbulent times for Nordic trade” was the motto at GTR Nordics 2022, where a record number of visitors learned about the relevance of Nordic clean-tech in building a climate-resilient future.
Nordic clean-tech takes on the world with export finance
Participants from across the world arrived at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheik to agree on measures to halt the escalating climate change. Delegates from EKN worked hard to raise awareness of the role of export financing in funding the transition.
COP27: “Funding and skills gaps need closing”
A new guarantee from EKN secures the supply of strategic raw materials to Swedish importers by covering the risk of new investments for raw material producers and their creditors.
Sweden secures supply of strategic raw materials
Almost 1,200 rural villages and towns in Côte d’Ivoire will have access to drinking water through a new EKN-supported project that promises a “massive impact” on local communities and women in particular.
Drinking water for 3 million people
The major expansion of an Estonian dairy facility will convert half of all milk produced in the country to a buffet of export success with the help of Tetra Pak and financing from ING Bank and EKN.
New Estonian dairy creates higher value to local farmers
Export credit agencies (ECAs) play a crucial role in a volatile market where many sovereigns and debt issuers find it harder to access capital, argues Cécile Camilli, Global Head of Development & Structured Export Finance at Société Générale, in an exclusive interview.
Uncertainty creates opportunity
A water treatment project in Ghana provides 400,000 with clean drinking water and reduces the need to walk long distances to fetch water. “EKN and SEK were important to help structure a competitive financing structure”, says Desislava Radeva at Standard Chartered Bank.
“Water is life”
EKN joins the world’s largest sailing ship to showcase Swedish exports, offering partners and exporters meeting venues from Europe to Asia.
Tailwind for Swedish exports
BNP Paribas was among those selected to arrange SoftBank Corp.’s syndicated loan signed in 2020/21 for 5G capex in Japan on the back of EKN support. “This transaction proves that ECA-backed financing is also highly attractive to blue-chip companies in advanced economies.”
Local currency cover from EKN secures major telecom deal in Japan
One of the premier banks to make use of EKN’s new online application tool, Credit Suisse believes the process added value in several ways: “It helped us expedite the application process and facilitated the administrative work.”
Credit Suisse: “a very positive experience”
Shooting through North-western Turkey like a silver bullet, a new high-speed electric train will connect important hubs with far less environmental impact than road traffic. Scandinavian export financing made the Green Loan possible.
Connecting Turkish hubs – new high-speed railway line
The rapidly growing investor appetite for sustainable investment is good news for the transition to a carbon-free society, which will require substantial funding as well as export credit risk cover to enable developing countries to join in. But how is sustainability defined and monitored – and can green investment be further incentivised to speed up the transition?
Green bonds hit the USD 1 trillion mark
As Global Head of Deutsche Bank’s Structured Trade & Export Finance, Werner Schmidt believes export finance has a crucial role to play in the transition to a carbon-free society. “We need to be the driver that make it happen.”
Deutsche Bank: “Doing nothing is the biggest risk.”
Our world is built from steel but as steel production accounts for about 7 percent of the global CO2 emissions, a carbon-free society needs new ways of making steel. A Swedish joint venture named Hybrit may hold the key by replacing a steel-making method that has been used for a thousand years.
Towards net zero with fossil-free steel
Marie Aglert, Head of Business Area Large Corporates at EKN, attended the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow. The important role of the financial sector in the climate transition and the need for a modernisation of the OECD framework were among her takeaways.
COP26: “The financial sector has a key role to play”
A novel guarantee construction from EKN brings a new class of energy-efficient and environmentally adapted ferries to international waters as passenger traffic is set to bounce back in the wake of eased travel restrictions.
Smooth ferry leasing secured
In Ghana, EKN-backed financing enables the biggest railway investment since independence. The project will boost exports, create new jobs and add to sustainability by shifting cargo from road to rail.
Fast track to growth in Ghana
Imagine photovoltaic cells that can be charged through indoor lighting, bent any which way, and look like leather, fabric or even brushed steel? And that can be integrated into headsets, remote controls and even your cellphone?
Solar cells from Sweden’s Exeger – soon in a headset near you
Mining one of the world’s largest copper discoveries in an environment like the Democratic Republic of the Congo, requires a thorough environmental and social due diligence and a comprehensive project sustainability agenda.
“Working with EKN was the big unlock”
The OECD raises the limit on how much local content in a project that may be covered by export credit agencies. The change reflects the reality of today’s complex global value chains and the multinational sourcing in large infrastructure projects, in particular.
ECA’s get the green light to cover more local costs
Local manufacturing and attractive dealership financing from EKN have stimulated growth in China for Volvo Construction Equipment. “The ability to offer credit is important in building a brand.”
Massive infrastructure investments
The mandatory ballast water treatment systems required under new maritime regulation is a major investment to smaller and midsize shipping companies. Supplier credit guarantees from EKN help spread the cost and boost exports of Alfa Laval’s market-leading solutions.
No more free cruises for invasive species
Cocoa, gold and oil, coupled with political stability, has placed Ghana in the top tier of African economies, but the quality of the infrastructure hasn’t quite kept up. That’s about to change.
Paving the way for progress
Attractive financing helps Angola harness the power of the sun in a 370MW solar project with substantial Swedish deliveries by Hitachi ABB Powergrids to electrify rural areas and help combat climate change.
Largest ever sub-Saharan solar project
EKN implements new guidelines to further emphasize its commitment to sustainability and positive climate impact, while phasing out its support of fossil-based ventures.
Why sustainability means good business
When passenger and goods traffic tumbled in the wake of Covid-19, Swedish shipping group Stena turned to EKN to secure access to liquidity. “The working capital credit guarantee is a good mechanism.”
New facility shored up shipping giant
As the countries of East and Southeast Asia are successful in reducing the spread of Covid-19, Swedish exports bounce back, notes EKN Chief Analyst Stefan Karlsson in a fresh report.
Swedish exports to East Asia set to recover
A new railroad with high-speed trains is connecting the coast of Tanzania to the centre of the country. Attractive financing and a comprehensive sustainability and environmental agenda render the multi-billion dollar project a showcase to the entire continent. Here’s how.
Fastest railway in East Africa
Proactivity in shaping new credit guarantees proved valuable to appliance maker Electrolux during the Covid-19 crisis: “EKN’s support enabled us to strengthen our liquidity position.”
Securing liquidity in times of uncertainty
At a time when exports are predicted to fall off a cliff, even large corporates may need financial reassurance when planning for an unpredictable future. When EKN introduced a battery of new support measures, the response was overwhelming: “The phones wouldn’t stop ringing,” says Marie Aglert, Head of Large Corporates at EKN.
New measures to bolster exports
Financing large infrastructure projects that require imported goods to be paid for in hard currency can be a challenge to developing countries, where such investments often exceed the risk appetite as well as the balance sheet of local financial institutions. Structured financing and a creative approach, however, permits funding in local currency with longer tenors and lower financing costs – plus the added benefit of risk cover from EKN.
Local currency financing lifts exports
The Covid-19 crisis has placed Swedish medtech company Getinge in an unusual spot. While demand for its life-sustaining ventilators have increased at a record pace, the global production chains are stalling. Here’s how Getinge managed to step up its global production, secure increased financing – and reopen a shutdown plant in Malaysia.
In the eye of the storm
As the hub of one of the world’s fastest growing economies, Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire needed a modern, sustainable public transport system to boost urban mobility and support the job market. Leveraging the coordinated know-how of Team Sweden, Scania landed a BRT contract that includes buses that run on banana peels.
Scania and Team Sweden sets Abidjan in motion
The value of a product is not just created in the manufacturing stage – research and development, as well as marketing and design, are also crucial components in today's increasingly globalized value chains.
Smiling curve shows how value is created