Renew Risk launches interconnector risk module with Aviva

Renew Risk has launched an Interconnector Risk Module for renewable energy assets, developed with Aviva.

The module is intended to help insurers, developers and investors assess and price risks linked to electricity interconnectors, which carry power across borders and are becoming a larger part of Europe's energy system.

It replaces broad assumptions with asset-level analysis, modelling factors such as route length, burial depth, seabed conditions, installation method and geographical location, all of which can affect a single cable's exposure.

Renew Risk is also adding interconnector exposure data to its Industry Exposure Database, giving underwriters and analysts another way to access asset-level information.

The launch reflects growing insurer interest in a market where projects are increasing in scale. Viking Link, which Renew Risk described as the world's longest onshore and subsea power interconnector, stretches 765 km, while the proposed Morocco-UK connection from Xlinks would run 4,000 km.

As interconnectors lengthen and pass through more varied environments, insurers face a more complex mix of technical and operational risks. The sector's expansion has increased demand for more detailed modelling, particularly for assets that span multiple countries and seabed conditions.

Conventional assessments have often relied on generic approaches that fail to distinguish between projects with very different exposure profiles, Renew Risk said. It added that this can lead to mispriced risk and weaken confidence in underwriting and investment decisions.

The new module has been developed as an add-on to Renew Risk's UK & Ireland Windstorm Model and European Windstorm Model. It focuses on a part of the energy infrastructure market that has become more prominent as Europe seeks to strengthen grid resilience and move renewable electricity between countries.

Interconnectors have also helped maintain electricity supplies during major outages and periods of energy disruption across the region. That role has made them more central to discussions around energy security as well as renewable integration.

Dr Joshua Macabuag OBE, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Renew Risk, said more detailed assessment was needed.

"Interconnectors are becoming some of the most important assets in Europe's renewable energy system, yet the industry has been pricing many of them using models never designed for the complexity we're seeing today. That creates inefficiencies throughout the market, from insurance pricing to investment decisions and project financing. By creating a dedicated interconnector risk module, we're giving stakeholders the ability to assess assets based on actual characteristics rather than broad assumptions. Better risk intelligence doesn't just improve underwriting outcomes; it has the potential to reduce the overall cost of risk for well-designed projects, unlock additional insurance capacity and ultimately lower the cost of delivering critical energy infrastructure," said Dr Joshua Macabuag OBE, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Renew Risk.

Insurer input

Aviva worked with Renew Risk on the module's development, underlining the insurance industry's interest in more specific tools for cross-border energy assets. The insurer said existing market methods have not always captured the differences between individual interconnector projects.

"As interconnectors become increasingly critical to the energy transition, the industry needs a more sophisticated way to assess and price their risks. By working with Renew Risk, we've helped develop a solution that moves beyond broad assumptions and provides a clearer understanding of risk at an asset level, supporting better decisions across the market," said Nicholas Evans, Deputy Head of Renewable Energy, Aviva.

Cross-border data

Renew Risk said the module was also developed with the Oasis Loss Modelling Framework, which updated its platform to support countryless location codes for cross-border assets. This means interconnector risk data can sit within existing catastrophe modelling workflows used by insurers.

A single cable can pass through multiple environments, each with distinct hazards. That creates an underwriting challenge because a project's risk profile may change significantly along its route rather than remain constant end to end.

Dr Ingrid Charvet, Head of Model Delivery and Innovation, Renew Risk, said this was a central reason for building the module.

"Interconnectors are inherently complex assets because a single cable can pass through multiple environments, each with its own risk profile. Factors such as route length, seabed conditions, burial depth and installation method can all influence the likelihood of damage, yet these differences have not always been reflected in traditional assessment approaches. We developed this module to better quantify those variations more accurately, providing insurers, developers and investors with a clearer understanding of where risk exists and how it should be managed," said Charvet.