Canada’s C$600m Green bond sells back at home as New York wildfires rage

Bloomberg sold green bonds back at home, with New York's wildfires darkening the New York skyline and spreading an orange haze from Massachusetts to South Carolina.

French-speaking province C $600 million $449 million by tapping its green bonds maturing in November 2032 at a spread of 68 basis points over Canada's government bonds, according to those with knowledge of the matter. The notes were marketed at a spread of around 68.5 percent.

The bond sale is expected to be mostly used to finance clean transportation projects, including a light rail system for Quebec City, the province said in a presentation on its website June 8. The issuer's green bond program allows it to allocate resources in four areas, such as climate change adaptation.

Bond arrangers priced the transaction ahead of the world in the number of powerful blazes over the past 24 hours, data from NASA satellites show, with more than 400 forest fires active across the country and many of them raging out of control. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blamed climate change for exacerbating the problem and said that hundreds of US firefighters have arrived in Canada.

Inbound flights to New York's LaGuardia Airport were grounded for a second day due to low visibility, while the Federal Aviation Administration warned that flights could also be halted at JFK, Newark and Teterboro.

Given the wildfire crisis in Quebec and across Canada, every investment should help reduce emissions and build climate resilience, said Julie Segal, a senior program manager for climate finance at Environmental Defence Canada. Quebec should continue to invest in alternatives that reduce emissions, such as this green bond for public transportation. With the assistance of Christine Buurma and Mathieu Dion.

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