What other businesses spring up next to a wind farm

Wind farms, the hottest investment sector of the moment in Romania, are good business not only for traditional equipment suppliers, but also for sectors such as insurance, transportation, consultancy and construction.

Perhaps one of the first businesses developed around wind power investments has been that of consulting services. According to data supplied by Wind Expert, the biggest Romanian consulting firm in the sector and to European statistics, costs for this stage of development range between 1% and 5% of the overall value of the investment.
One of the services that is starting to emerge as wind farms emerge is insurance for such projects.
“The main risks involved in such an investment are construction risks, loss of revenue because of damage to the equipment, damage caused by a third party, environmental damage, and losses generated by the lack of wind. The services in highest demand tend to be insurance against technical generator problems, theft, and manufacturing faults,” explains Steven Murray, representative of Marsh, the world’s biggest insurance broker, and a risk consultant. Murray says his company has yet to conclude insurance policies for Romanian-based projects, but that it was analysing the market given the large number of wind power projects announced.