Renewable energy projects need to provide as much information as possible to give underwriters confidence given the pace of expansion and innovation in the sector, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) says.

Australian renewable energy growth has been led by wind, solar and, more recently, battery storage projects, driving demand for appropriate insurance.

Senior Underwriter – Power Fraser Logan and Senior Underwriter – Power and Mining Pat Behan say multiline solutions that provide end-to-end property coverage are theoretically “a perfect fit for these projects”.

“In practice, the sector has found sustainable underwriting solutions to be elusive, with only a small number of insurers providing solutions for the complete life cycle of a project.”

BHSI says gaining underwriter confidence involves providing details across site analysis, technology, design and redundancy, construction works, operations and plans for managing ageing assets toward the end of their life.

In the case of site selection, renewable energy projects are often located in remote areas that may have heightened exposure to natural catastrophes.

“Understanding how these types of exposures could affect the site or result in a potential loss will be a key component for the underwriter, Mr Logan and Mr Behan say.

Underwriters are also looking to understand how the equipment and the project overall will perform from reliability and management perspectives.

“With the recent boom in renewables more contractors are eager to branch into the sector and project experience can vary greatly,” they say.

“Underwriters will want to understand as much as they can about the stakeholders involved, their skillsets and sector experience to gain confidence that the project will be well managed.”

Issues to take into account with aging assets include potential problems if a critical piece of equipment fails and can no longer be easily replaced.