Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance advises Shell on pioneering post-LIBOR, sustainability-linked USD 10bn revolving credit facility

International law firm Clifford Chance advised Royal Dutch Shell on its USD10bn revolving credit facility. The facility is provided by a syndicate of 25 banks and replaces Shell’s existing USD 8.84bn arrangement.

In anticipation of the cessation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), this is one of the world’s first and largest credit facilities that will be linked to the new Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”). The loan also links the interest and fees paid on the facility to Shell’s progress towards its three-year target to reduce its Net Carbon Footprint by 2% to 3% by 2021 (vs 2016), as the business pursues its ambition to reduce the Net Carbon Footprint of the energy products it sells by around 50% by 2050 and by 20% by 2035 as it moves towards meeting the aims of the Paris Agreement.

Clifford Chance is a leader in green finance, and has advised on several "first of their kind" deals including: the first blue bond (Republic of Seychelles), the first green sovereign sukuk (Republic of Indonesia), the largest ever single renewable asset project financing (Hornsea), and the first Green EMTN Programme and €1.75 billion bonds thereunder (Société du Grand Paris).

The Clifford Chance team was led by energy and infrastructure partner John Wilkins, working with Director Olamide Oladosu.

Bank of America and Barclays Bank acted as joint co-ordinators for the facility.