Assessment of environmental and social impacts

EXIMBANKA SR proceed evaluation of the impact of exports on the environment and human rights in accordance with internal regulations, which are updated in terms of the revision of Council Recommendation on Common Approaches to Officially Supported Export Credits and Environmental and Social Due Diligence ("Common Approaches") issued 7 April 2016. Evaluation of the environmental and social impact of exports shall begin submitting applications for insurance or export credit. Evaluation of the environmental and social impacts of exports refers to the country of final destination of the export and / or investments abroad of Slovak legal entities.

EXIMBANKA SR proceeds evaluation of the impact of exports on the environment and human rights in the following 3 steps:

Screening

EXIMBANKA SR evaluates all applications for insurance or export credit:

• whether they are related to projects or to existing operations;
• whether or not the exports are destined to identified locations that are in or near sensitive areas;
• whether or not there may be a high likelihood of severe project-related human rights impacts occurring; and
• whether or not the share of EXIMBANKA SR is equal to or above SDR 10 million
• whether the export is subject identified, directly or indirectly, in the list of sensitive industries and sectors.

Classification

EXIMBANKA SR based on the screening classifies the project into category A - C relating to:

• All projects in or near sensitive areas irrespective of their share.
• All projects for which their share is equal to or above SDR 10 million.
• All projects where the object is identified export, directly or indirectly, in the list of sensitive industries and sectors

EXIMBANKA SR assesses for potential environmental and/or social risks applications relating to

• All existing operations for which their share is equal to or above SDR 10 million.
• All existing operations and projects, irrespective of their share, where the screening has identified that there is a high likelihood of severe project-related human rights impacts occurring.

The classification process is carried out in terms of all ten environmental policies of the World Bank (environmental assessment, natural habitats, forests, pests management, physical cultural resources, involuntary resettlement, indigenous peoples, safety of dams, international waterways, disputed areas), all eight Performance Standards IFC (assessment and management of environmental and social risks and impacts, labour and working conditions, resource efficiency and pollution prevention, community health, safety and security, land acquisition and involuntary resettlement, biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of living natural resources, indigenous people, cultural heritage) and 8 industry sector guidelines of environmental safety and health policy of the World Bank (Forestry, Infrastructure, Agribusiness/Food Production, Chemicals, Mining, Power industry, Processing of oil and gas, General Manufacturing ).

Projects are classified into the following categories:

Category A: a project is classified as Category A if it has the potential to have significant adverse environmental and/or social impacts, which are diverse, irreversible and/or unprecedented. These impacts may affect an area broader than the sites or facilities subject to physical works. Category A, in principle, includes projects in sensitive sectors or located in or near sensitive areas.

Category B: a project is classified as Category B if its potential environmental and/or social impacts are less adverse than those of Category A projects. Typically, these impacts are few in number, site-specific, few if any are irreversible, and mitigation measures are more readily available.

Category C: a project is classified as Category C if it has minimal or no potentially adverse environmental and/or social impacts.

In the case of the classification of the project as Category A it is necessary for exporter/applicant to present an ESIA report. The results of the report must be unambiguous that the environmental and social impact of export meets international and national environmental limits and criteria and is in line with the common approaches. Exporter, in the case of the classification of the project to the Category A, is also obliged to publish the Environmental report (e.g. website) as soon as possible, but not later than 30 days before the date of final commitment to the grant official support.

In the case of the classification of the project in category B EXIMBANKA SR requests exporter to submit relevant information regarding the environmental and social impact of the project or, in appropriate cases, to undertake an environmental expertise.

Monitoring

In the course of implementing the project classified in category A or B the exporter has to submit monitoring reports in accordance with the terms required by EXIMBANKA SR.

Notification – transparency

EXIMBANKA SR publishes information on the support to the exports of category "A", including information about its name, location, characteristics and other source of the exports details, including expertise at least 30 calendar days before a final commitment. The related support information on project category „B“ is published after final commitment on the website. If the EXIMBANKA SR has for the particular project the position of the reinsurer or the support is applied only to the subcontractor, there can be only references directed to the website of the main insurer or export-credit agencies main contractor exports on the web site. In case of the support to the project of category A or B EXIMBANKA SR continuously, minimum semi-annually, informs the OECD - Working Party on Export credits (Export Credit Group).

EXIMBANKA SR submits these information on an annual basis to the European Parliament, there information are also published in the EXIMBANKA SR´s Annual Report.