Carbon capture and storage provide particular challenges

London, 18 October, 2010 – New technologies and environmental responsibility in the power sector were the issues of greatest concern to risk managers at a major power conference, held recently in Istanbul.

The Marsh Power Forum, held earlier this month, examined how the power sector in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) can manage and mitigate risks associated with growing energy demands, on the one hand, and an increased corporate and regulatory environmental commitment on the other.

The power sector is under increasing pressure from investors, regulators and other stakeholders to demonstrate a tangible commitment to green energy. However, despite this commitment, it is predicted that coal fired generation will still represent over 44% of the mix of global energy production by 2030. This is almost double its 2007 total level.

Mark Pollard, Head of Marsh’s Industry Practices in EMEA, commented: “On a global scale, coal is growing not only in absolute terms, but also relative to other generation sources. In an attempt to mitigate the environmental impact, new technologies are being introduced, and existing technologies are being pushed towards new frontiers. These developments change the risk profile of the industry”.

The forum examined, in depth, the evolving risk profile of the power sector from the point of view of many stakeholders: manufacturers, operators and financiers.

The increasingly important role that coal power generation will play on the global stage means that innovation within this sector is key in order to improve efficiency and lessen the environmental damage. Marsh advocates innovative risk management and mitigation strategies which anticipate and meet these developing requirements. These include strategies to cope with the increased demands on power generation plants to capture and store carbon emissions, as well as management of stored carbon.

The Marsh Power Conference, which, attracted over 150 delegates from around the world, brought together experts from the power generation industry, equipment manufacturers, the insurance market, risk managers and financiers.