The PhD project aims to develop an innovative risk management framework, with the potential to minimise risks and enhance insurance outcomes for offshore wind.
The Supergen Offshore Renewable (ORE) Hub and the University of Exeter have secured support from Aviva to fund a ground breaking four-year PhD project, aimed at developing a novel risk management framework for offshore wind construction and operations insurance programmes.
As offshore wind rapidly evolves, many wind farms are adopting new, innovative technologies with a limited track record in terms of construction and operational experience. This creates challenges for the insurance programmes which must regularly adapt their risk management approach to ensure the best possible risk profile is captured, often relying on assumptions and historical trends.
The PhD project at the University of Exeter will help to overcome this issue by challenging existing insurance risk management practices applied to the construction and operation of offshore wind farms. The new framework will play an important role in mitigating construction and operational risks associated with these projects. In addition, it will be valid for the current global fleet of offshore wind farms, as well as adaptable for future projects using new technologies.
"This is an important area of work and brings together our risk and reliability work for offshore renewable energy with the commercial insurance perspectives. Through its partners, the project will have access to a unique data set to develop a new risk management framework."
This novel risk management approach will help Aviva to continue evolving its underwriting strategy and decision-making process for the placement of offshore wind insurance programmes, ensuring focus remains on factors that account for the most significant losses.
Muhammad Ahmad from the University of Exeter will undertake a number of placements over the four-year PhD with Aviva Risk Management Solutions (ARMS), which is providing overall oversight of the project, to support him to become familiar with the data Aviva handles, existing data analysis tools and pinch points linked to risk assessing offshore wind submissions.
The project is guided by a steering committee comprising key stakeholders from the offshore wind sector, McGill & Partners, a speciality insurance and reinsurance broker, and the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult. Each committee member brings a different perspective, helping to shape the project with insights from clients, brokers and the sector.
“At McGill and Partners, we are excited to contribute to this project aimed at creating a more effective framework for risk interpretation for offshore wind construction and operations. As a trusted, specialty insurance broker in the offshore wind sector, we are proud to have a role guiding this important research which offers a unique opportunity to highlight the work of insurance risk management. This will help shape a more resilient and sustainable framework for the future of the industry.”
“In a rapidly expanding sector, this pioneering PhD project will support the development of a much-needed risk management framework tailored for advancing research and innovation in the offshore wind sector. “The Supergen ORE Hub, through our core partner the University of Exeter, is pleased to partner with Aviva to address the underwriting challenges posed by rapid technological advancements, paving the way for a more resilient insurance landscape that fosters reduced costs and promotes increased financial sustainability in the sector. This initiative reflects the commitment of the Supergen ORE Hub to innovative research that accelerates the whole system development of offshore renewable energy, ensuring the sustainability of our energy future."
We'll share updates from Muhammad Ahmad's research as it develops.
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