Chinese rating agency assigns Russian company ESG rating for first time

MOSCOW. Dec 2 (Interfax) - A subsidiary of the Chinese credit rating agency China Chengxin International Credit Rating Co. (CCXI), China Chengxin Green Finance Technology (CCXGF), has assigned an ESG rating to a Russian company for the first time.

The rating was given to JSC INK-Capital, the main shareholder of Irkutsk Oil Company, CCXGF said in a statement.

The company received an ESG rating of BBB+. The audit of the organization was conducted across 17 criteria related to environmental, social, and governance aspects.

INK-Capital's rating is 14% higher than the average industry score of public companies in the oil and gas sector previously rated by CCXGF.

Previously, at the end of 2023, the Russian rating agency Expert RA assigned JSC INK-Capital an ESG rating of ESG-III (a) with a stable outlook.

Irkutsk Oil Company is one of the largest independent hydrocarbon producers in Russia. Founded in 2000, the company conducts geological exploration, prospecting and development at 53 subsoil sites in the Irkutsk region, Krasnoyarsk Territory and Yakutia.