BPI, PGBI ink deal on green buildings push

THE Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and Philippine Green Building Initiative (PGBI) inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to support and encourage the construction of more green buildings in the Philippines.

Under the MoU, PGBI will help BPI render technical support to the bank’s client-developers that desire to undertake construction of green buildings and assist these clients in complying with the Philippine Green Building Code.

The MoU was signed during the Green Breakthroughs: Green Building for a Better Future held on Monday at the Makati Shangri-la Hotel, a forum hosted by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group.

“Now, knowing that PGBI helped crafting the law, is very active there best position to help us in educating the public and helping implement the law and ensuring that our clients are compliant,” BPI Vice President Jo Ann Eala said in a one-on-one chance interview.

Eala added green buildings have been the bank’s focus over the past 2016. She said both BPI and PGBI are advocates of the green building code.

For EDGE Executive Director Ramon Aguilos, the MoU was a product of their initial exploratory talks with the BPI, which basically covers the as green initiatives.

Aguilos said PGBI will provide technical support and consultation aside from the BPI’s in-house consulting group.

EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Ef a green building project during its early design phase. PGBI is the sole certifying body for EDGE projects in the country.

The MoU between BPI and PGBI is an openended agreement which is subject to periodic evaluation.