Clean Energy Insurance Jitterbug

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The object of this blog post is to let you know the steps taken by Deland Gibson/Clean Energy Insurance (DGI/Clean Energy Insurance) to ensure the insurance support for the financing, construction and operation of clean energy projects.

DGI/Clean Energy Insurance is a Wellesley, Massachusetts based insurance brokerage and risk management consulting firm focusing on clients in the fields of renewable energy, clean energy technology. Our role is to help our clients address their risks through: contractual risk transfer, mitigation strategies, retention or insurance placement. As insurance brokers, we present our clients’ risks to insurers and facilitate competition so our clients get the best available terms, conditions and pricing the clean energy insurance marketplace has to offer. In this capacity we work extensively with companies introducing new sustainable technologies or processes. This requires that we understand our client’s risk profile and the insurer’s appetite for risk. It also requires that we work with insurers to take new risks not previously considered, and develop new insurance coverage products to address those risks.

DGI/Clean Energy Insurance has over 25 years in the insurance brokerage business supporting clients in the power generation, independent power and oil & gas industries while working for large multi-national brokerage firms Marsh, Willis, etc. DGI/Clean Energy Insurance was formed to address the insurance and risk management needs of young, high growth renewable energy companies that are introducing new technologies, processes or business models, and are frequently overlooked or under served by larger brokerage firms.

We are approaching insurers with the idea of eventually sharing clean energy risks among several insurers – a strategy used regularly for oil refineries, large power plants, and other large capital intensive projects. U.S. and European insurers we are approaching include: ACE, AIG, Allianz, Arch, FM Global, Liberty Mutual, Hartford, Munich Re, Travelers, Starr Technical Risks, Swiss Re, XL, Zurich, and, Lloyd’s of London.

Finally, we are in discussions with underwriters about insuring the technical performance or process of the new energy technology elements in order to provide support for debt service and thus obtain more favorable lending terms. This is not a form of insurance traditionally offered in the marketplace. There is no reinsurance available for this coverage, and any insurer writing the coverage will retain the risk exposure on their balance sheets. The insurance is generally referred to as “systems performance” or “efficacy insurance”. Such a product could potentially offer a cost-effective means of securing project-financed debt for the project without the need for loan guarantees or corporate balance-sheet support.

For more information about DGI/Clean Energy Insurance, visit Clean-EnergyInsurance.com.

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