Top Environmental Finance Companies - List of the Environmental Finance Firms

What are environmental finance companies?

       Environmental finance companies are companies that finance environmental projects, programs, activities, and organizations working to protect the environment and nature. Adequate financing is the most important condition for solving environmental problems.

       Environmental protection is a financially intensive activity. For example, the cost of sewage treatment plants at an enterprise is sometimes up to 40% of the cost of the enterprise itself. 

      Nowadays, consumers, their organizations, the public (in the respective region), third parties (financial institutions and insurance companies), as well as shareholders and employees of companies pay special attention to the impact of atropogenization on nature. This is what has given rise to socially responsible investing.

What are the options for getting money for environmental projects?

Environmental concerns on the part of businesses are already more than just a trend. Companies do it not only to form a positive image. Many businesses are interested in developing alternative technologies that are safe for nature and the surrounding areas where they work. In addition, it is often profitable for companies to realize such projects, especially with the help of impact investing.

There are a variety of ways to raise money for environmental projects. Some options include crowdfunding, soliciting donations from individuals or organizations, or seeking government funding.

Investing in green projects and programs is carried out at the expense of state and non-budgetary funds.

State (budgetary) financing.

It is mainly aimed at the implementation of targeted programs, elimination of the consequences of man-made disasters and natural calamities, construction of environmental protection facilities, etc.

The revenue part of the state budget (regional and local levels) is replenished by payments and deductions for the use of natural resources and environmental pollution.

Such revenues comprise deductions to the budget from regular environmental payments, funds received as a result of applying measures of civil, administrative, and criminal liability (fines), and funds received in compensation for damage caused by violation of relevant legal regulations, as well as revenues from paid environmental services provided by municipal enterprises.

Extrabudgetary financing.

Extrabudgetary investment in sustainability occurs at the expense of funds from non-budgetary sources – the natural resource users' own funds, environmental funds, and environmental insurance. Environmental funds are “accumulators” of funds for solving various environmental protection tasks (restoration of environmental losses, environmental improvement, etc.).

They represent a unified system (federal, regional, local) of extra-budgetary public institutions and are formed from: payments for emissions (discharges), waste disposal, and other types of pollution; amounts of claims for damages, fines, etc.; funds from the sale of confiscated hunting and fishing gear, illegally harvested products; voluntary contributions and donations; funds from various commercial, economic and financial activities (dividends, interest from contributions, profits from equity participation in the activities of the company).

These funds are spent on improving the quality of the environment; implementing environmental protection programs; awarding environmental nonprofit grants; constructing wastewater treatment plants; introducing environmentally low-waste and waste-free technologies; compensation for the health of citizens, their property; environmental education, upbringing, and culture.

Both state and extra-budgetary financing provide programs for obtaining special environmental grants. Eco-grants are funds from the state, foundations, or individuals. They can sponsor the sorting of garbage, programs to preserve the biodiversity of water bodies, landscaping, and the creation of recreational areas, saving rare animals and birds.

Grants for environmental projects are divided according to the topic of the project:

● environmental cleanup grants provide funding for programs designed to clean up areas that have been polluted by human impact and beyond;
● environmental education grants are payments available to students who want to receive environmental education and later take an active part in environmental projects;
● grants for environmental start-ups, which fund young projects, and
programs aimed at popularizing eco-movement and helping to prevent pollution.

How do I seek finance for energy and environmental projects?

Green investments require a project to be developed. It should not be just ideas, but a coherent plan aimed at the implementation of the goals in a short time frame (3-12 months). The possibility of receiving funds from environmental social and governance funds almost always exists, you just need to approach the matter in a methodically correct way. Here are some general recommendations on this.

1. You must be known in the region

Regular media coverage of your ongoing activities, events, actions, and campaigns. If possible, more often to tell how great your work is, what important environmental problems you are concerned about, how you try to solve them, how you successfully cooperate with the authorities, and what a great benefit all your activities bring to improve the environmental situation, and therefore, for the inhabitants of the region.

For example, if your project is aimed at strengthening the use of alternative energy sources (such as wind power or solar power), it is necessary to tell what is dangerous for the environment the unsustainable use of coal or gas.

2. You should be remembered by the authorities

You should regularly remind the authorities, on whom financial decisions depend, of your existence. Media appearances are very important for this purpose.

3. You must be useful to the region

Your organization should be involved as much as possible with regional projects, programs, etc. This doesn't only mean “incorporation” into already existing regional ecological programs, but also active initiation of development, acceptance, and realization of those ecological projects and programs which your organization considers necessary and useful (of course, this will require proving, persuasion, attracting media, cabinet searches, etc.).

The main factor here is your readiness to cooperate constructively, to focus on the ecologically important result, and not to abstractly criticize the authorities for the fact that they are “the power”. The constructive position is not to praise them (although if there is a reason to do so, it must be done), but to actively search for real ways to solve problems together.

How to Choose the Right Environmental Investment Company

       With a project in place, it is important to choose a sustainable investing company. When choosing a company to invest in environmental programs, it is necessary to consider:

● How long this company has been on the market. 
● In what projects they have already invested. It is often the case that certain environmental finance firms invest in projects that have a similar goal or theme.
● How successful the funds previously invested have been. Experience is of no small importance.
● Terms of investment and repayment. Environmental law firms can help figure this out.