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.