Products & Policies | Ex-Im Bank Policies | Environment

ANNEX F

Environmental Exports Program

Ex-Im Bank is committed to increasing the level of support it provides to U.S. exporters of renewable energy and environmentally beneficial goods and services as well as to exporters participating in foreign environmental projects. To achieve this objective, Ex-Im Bank's Environmental Exports Program provides enhanced levels of support for a broad range of renewable energy and other environmentally beneficial exports.

Financing Products:

Insurance

Ex-Im Bank’s short-term environmental export insurance policy provides enhanced short-term, multi-buyer and single-buyer insurance coverage for small business environmental exporters. The policy provides the exporter with the ability to offer credit terms to its foreign customers for up to 180 days.

Features include:

• 95 percent commercial coverage and 100 percent political coverage with no deductible
• Minimum annual premium of $500
• Enhanced provision for assignment of insured receivables

Guarantees and Loans

Ex-Im Bank's medium-term export credit insurance policy enables U.S. exporters to offer a complete package of both technology and financing to their international buyers of capital goods and environmental services.

Ex-Im Bank offers enhanced medium- and long-term loan and guarantee support for environmental projects, products and services.

Enhancements include:

• Maximum allowable repayment terms permissible under OECD guidelines. (Repayment terms may not exceed those specified in Ex-Im Bank's Country Limitation Schedule.)
• Capitalization of interest during construction.
• Local cost coverage equal to 15 percent of the U.S. contract price.

These features are intended to substantially improve the competitive position of U.S. environmental exporters. In addition, Ex-Im Bank will aggressively use its tied aid resources to offset foreign concessionary financing offers for environmental projects.

Qualifying Exports

Exports qualifying for enhance support under this program include products or services for foreign environmental or renewable energy projects or facilities, or the export of products and services specifically used to aid in the prevention, abatement, control, or mitigation of air, water and ground contamination or pollution, or which provide protection in the handling of toxic substances and wastes, subject to Ex-Im Bank's determination. The following lists are examples of the types of exports considered eligible.*

Exports of the following types of products are generally considered eligible:

• Instruments to measure or monitor air or water quality
• Emission or effluent pollution control equipment
• Equipment for waste collection and disposal systems
• Services to upgrade environmental regulations
• Environmental assessments, ecological studies, environmental engineering and training services
• Ecological monitoring equipment
• Hazardous and toxic material handling devices
• Water purification devices and wastewater treatment systems
• Certain energy efficiency enhancement devices, services to improve energy efficiency

Exports for the following types of projects are generally considered eligible:

• Air, water and soil pollution cleanup
• Ecology management or forestry management
• Certain renewable or alternative energy projects, including photovoltaic, wind, hybrid, biomass, fuel cells, waste to energy, hydroelectric, coal gasification and geothermal
• Projects specifically undertaken to bring existing plants/facilities into conformance with current local and/or Ex-Im Bank environmental guidelines
• Wastewater, sewage or waste treatment projects
• Toxic waste or substance cleanup projects
• Drinking-water treatment facilities

*These examples are illustrative and are not intended to be all-inclusive. Transactions are generally not limited with respect to size. Eligibility is subject to existing Ex-Im Bank policies including foreign content guidelines and adherence to Ex-Im Bank's environmental guidelines and objectives.

July 20, 2004
Export-Import Bank of the United States