Willis Group has incorporated its international mining expertise into one worldwide hub.

The new group brings Willis’ main mining businesses under one umbrella reporting to Steve Hearn, the London-based Chairman of Global Markets, with offices in Australia, the US, the UK and Bermuda.

The Australian practice chief will be Steve Higginson, who told insuranceNEWS.com.au the new hub is “a platform to introduce the concept of where we’re going in Willis in the next five years”.

“We’ve got a team in London and satellite teams everywhere,” he said. “[But] we have access to the same quality of data and we’re all part of one group.”

Mr Hearn says mining companies need a “globally aligned risk management partner that can fight in their corner for the best insurance coverage”.

“This will become increasingly important with the continued impact of the global economy on commodity prices and company income,” he said.