Canopius Group is advancing portfolio development in power, renewables, energy and construction through two senior appointments within its newly created natural resources team.
The international specialty and P&C re/insurer has named Nicholas Whettem (pictured left) head of power and renewables, based in London, and Namrata Soni (pictured right) energy and construction underwriter, based in Sydney. Both appointments take effect immediately.
The hires follow this year’s formation of a consolidated natural resources team that brings together energy, heavy industry and construction underwriting under one structure. The company said at the time that the move was designed to align with how brokers allocate business across upstream, midstream and downstream energy, power and renewables, mining, metals and chemicals.
Under the revised structure, Canopius writes risks across the energy value chain within a single underwriting group. The unit also combines technical specialists, in-house engineers and claims professionals. According to company statements published in February, the framework is intended to facilitate cross-class solutions and coordinate risk mitigation and claims handling across the insurance lifecycle.
Within that structure, Whettem will lead development of the power and renewables book. He joins from Zurich, where he served as a senior underwriter in power generation and sustainable energy. He previously managed MS Amlin’s energy and industry underwriting book in the London Market. He will report to Alois Rouffiac, chief underwriting officer UK.
“Nicholas embodies our ambition to continually enhance the service we provide to brokers and insureds. His ability to bring fresh insight and challenge conventional thinking makes him an ideal fit for this role. His deep technical expertise and forward-looking approach will be instrumental as we expand our Natural Resources capabilities,” said Rouffiac.
Meanwhile, Soni joins from Chubb Insurance Australia, where she worked as a senior underwriter specializing in construction, energy and power generation. Based in Sydney, she will report to Andrew Ziolkowski, country head of Australia and New Zealand.
“Namrata’s appointment further strengthens our presence in the Australian market and reinforces our commitment to delivering specialist underwriting expertise across the full energy and construction spectrum. Her experience and reputation in the region will be invaluable as we continue to grow and support our clients with tailored, high-quality solutions,” said Ziolkowski.
Canopius has said the consolidated team can support placements that include sabotage and terrorism, cyber, project cargo and casualty in addition to core energy and industrial coverage.
The underwriting reorganization comes during a period of structural change for the group. Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance has agreed to invest an additional $570 million in Canopius, increasing its ownership to 40%, subject to regulatory approval, according to prior company disclosures. Majority shareholder Centerbridge Partners remains part of the governance structure.
In the US market, Canopius recently agreed to sell technology-focused managing general agent Vave to Acrisure, while remaining a multi-year capacity provider. The transaction allows Vave to operate independently and maintain an underwriting relationship with Canopius.
The company has not disclosed changes to capacity, pricing or geographic strategy linked to the natural resources team.
