Standard Chartered and World Bank close $200mn clean cooking bond to 415,000 cookstoves in Ghana

Standard Chartered (LSE:STAN) and the World Bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) have closed a $200mn Clean Cooking Outcome Bond that will unlock $30.5mn to fund the rollout of 415,000 cleaner cookstoves in Ghana between 2025 and 2028, in one of the most advanced uses to date of Article 6.2 carbon-credit mechanisms under the Paris Agreement.

The six-year, principal-protected bond is issued by IBRD and structured with returns linked to Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs). Standard Chartered acted as sole lead manager and bookrunner. A portion of the coupon will vary according to verified emissions reductions generated by the project, creating a template for scaling private capital into carbon-linked mitigation outcomes.

Proceeds will finance electric cookstoves and improved biomass stoves distributed by UpEnergy across Ghana, replacing inefficient traditional cooking devices prevalent in rural and low-income communities.

Roughly 75% of Ghanaians, around 26mn people, rely on fuelwood or charcoal, contributing to household air pollution that health agencies associate with about 28,000 premature deaths each year, particularly among women and children.

Verified emissions reductions will generate ITMOs under Article 6.2. These will be purchased by Switzerland’s KliK Foundation (non-listed), with transfers recorded in the Swiss Emissions Trading Registry after applying the country’s Overall Mitigation in Global Emissions (OMGE) deduction. Switzerland will retire the credits against its nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement.

Standard Chartered said the deal demonstrates strong investor appetite for outcome-linked instruments and highlights the bank’s ability to mobilise climate finance across its footprint. The World Bank said the structure channels private capital efficiently into high-impact social and environmental projects. UpEnergy noted that outcome-based finance accelerates access to modern cooking solutions while supporting local jobs and economic activity.

Funding will be released in four milestone-linked tranches to ensure transparency and integrity. Beyond emissions reductions, the cookstoves aim to lower energy costs for households and reduce time spent collecting firewood.

Globally, around 2.1bn people still rely on traditional biomass for cooking. Ghana remains heavily dependent on wood and charcoal—31.1% and 23.3% of households respectively—underscoring the environmental and health challenges the bond seeks to address.