The great energy transition: how confident is your business?

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Three-quarters of executives still face challenges transitioning while meeting net zero targets amid energy upheaval

The global energy sector is going through a period of transformation – an era that brings both huge opportunities for economic growth as well as immense challenges around emerging and often complex risks. The balance between a push for decarbonisation and the need to succeed economically is also throwing up questions for UK businesses about which goal to prioritise in the great energy transition. According to Beazley’s Spotlight on Energy Transformation 2026, which interviewed 3,500 global business leaders, this transformation is gathering pace,

Beazley is a leading global specialty insurer that provides insurance and risk management solutions to businesses of all sizes across a wide range of industries. The company serves clients through operations in North America, Europe, Asia and other international markets. Beazley is recognised for its expertise in specialty lines such as cyber, professional liability, marine, aviation, political risks, environmental liability, property and renewable energy. The company combines specialist underwriting capabilities, deep industry knowledge and risk management expertise to help organisations navigate complex and emerging risks in an evolving global landscape. Beazley is a company of Zurich.

“Nowadays, insurers are becoming involved much earlier in the project life cycle, using loss data and risk expertise to improve resilience and make projects more investable”

Kelly Malynn, Beazley

Published 2 Nov 2026

“Those that view the transition as an opportunity, building resilience into decision-making and investing through periods of uncertainty, will be best positioned to succeed”

Kelly Malynn, Beazley

Executives who feel 'very prepared' for the energy transition

36%

38%

42%

Europe (inc. UK) US Canada Singapore

“Those that view the transition as an opportunity, building resilience into decision-making and investing through periods of uncertainty, will be best positioned to succeed. As risks become increasingly interconnected, this requires a move beyond static risk models towards a more dynamic, forward-looking approach to risk management.” A key differentiator here, according to Malynn, will be collaboration. Because delivering the next generation of energy infrastructure will require governments, investors, insurers and industry to work together more closely than ever before. “We’re already seeing governments use incentives and guarantees to support projects, while multilateral banks, export credit agencies and green funds work alongside insurers to expand insurability across new markets and technologies,” added Malynn. “Ultimately, the winners will be the organisations that turn risk management into a strategic advantage. By protecting assets, securing energy supply and maintaining the confidence to invest through change, they will be best positioned to capture the opportunities created by the energy transition and lead in a rapidly evolving landscape.”

supercharged by industrial growth, AI and geopolitical shifts, and backed by governmental pushes towards clean energy. This surge is also redefining what an insurance partner really is and what’s expected of the sector’s leaders in the months to come. Insurers as a strategic partner “Insurance is becoming more of a strategic partner in the energy transition,” Kelly Malynn, head of transition and emerging risk underwriting at Beazley, told Insurance Business. “Banks and investors need confidence that project risks are understood and manageable before capital is committed. Insurance has become a prerequisite for many renewable energy projects, with lenders often requiring robust cover before releasing funds.” “Nowadays, insurers are becoming involved much earlier in the project life cycle, using loss data and risk expertise to improve resilience and make projects more investable. Earlier this year, Beazley acquired renewable energy MGA kWh Analytics to enhance its capabilities across renewable energy portfolios, which is now fully integrated into the transition and emerging risk underwriting team. Their analysis has already helped improve the industry’s understanding of solar risks, informing stronger solar panel designs and the adoption of ‘hail stow’ technology to reduce damage during severe hailstorms.”

The role of insurers is becoming even more important now as investment flows into areas where risks are less familiar, from fusion energy and carbon capture to small modular reactors and floating nuclear platforms. In these cases of emerging technology, the insurance industry is well equipped to apply existing risk assessment experience, and where incidents do occur, a rapid feedback loop allows those insights to be quickly absorbed and fed back into future risk assessments. “By working closely with developers and brokers to understand new exposures, insurers can develop solutions that give investors confidence and help unlock capital,” advised Malynn. “That is where insurance becomes an

enabler rather than simply a financial backstop. By helping projects become resilient, insurable and financeable, insurers play a critical role in bringing new energy infrastructure and technologies to market.” Decarbonisation vs. economic pressure: competing priorities However, it’s often easier said than done. According to Beazley’s research, businesses are struggling to balance that decarbonisation element with intense economic pressure, leading to a case of competing goals. Beazley’s data found that while 75% of executives say they’re struggling to transition to non-carbon energy sources while meeting net zero targets, 74% say the current economic climate is pushing sustainability down their list of priorities. “In periods of economic uncertainty, sustainability initiatives are often viewed as costs that can be delayed or scaled back, rather than investments that can help businesses navigate long-term change,” added Malynn. “The reality is that the energy transition is already underway. Long-term reliance on traditional fuels is both economically and environmentally unsustainable. There’s no denying that energy demand is rising rapidly. Growth in data centres, electrification and geopolitical uncertainty driving a need for greater energy security have highlighted a simple reality: we cannot rely on fossil fuels alone, and in many cases, there simply won’t be enough supply to meet future demand. Data centre electricity consumption alone is projected to quintuple by 2040.” As Malynn told IB, organisations that begin adapting now will be better placed to manage energy price volatility, respond to regulatory change and meet shifting market demands.

“The challenge is not choosing between sustainability and commercial performance but understanding where investments in the transition can help deliver both,” she added. ‘Businesses are underestimating the potential overlap of multiple risks’Today’s energy transition risks are increasingly systemic, according to Beazley’s report, with climate, geopolitics, regulation and supply chains all interacting with and impacting each other. The physical effects of climate change are already shaping business decisions, with 78% of executives agreeing that fires, floods and heatwaves are influencing where and how they operate. “Businesses are still underestimating the potential overlap of multiple risks, or in other words, the way several pressures can occur simultaneously across geographies and areas of exposure,” said Malynn. “Most organisations are already aware of these threats in isolation, but what many still underestimate is how quickly disruption in one area can have implications across multiple parts of a project and that there are often secondary impacts that haven’t been fully considered.” “Take the development of new energy infrastructure. A project could face construction delays caused by extreme weather, only to find

replacement components caught up in supply chain disruption or rising costs driven by geopolitical tensions. At the same time, regulatory requirements may evolve as governments respond to changing energy priorities. In isolation, none of these risks are new. What is changing is the speed and scale at which they can impact a project.” And Beazley’s data attests to this, with 32% of global executives ranking energy transition-related supply delays and instability among their top three macro risks, while 75% say the diversity and complexity of global regulations are increasing operational risk. “That is why businesses need to understand how risks connect across their operations, supply chains and investments,” added Malynn. “This is where insurers are particularly well positioned to help; these risks rarely fall into a single area of exposure, so we are able to bring a cross-class perspective to support businesses to move forward at scale. Those that map these connections and test different scenarios will be better placed to absorb disruption and prevent a single issue from creating wider issues.”

In the UK, 36% of executives say they’re ‘prepared’ for the energy transition – putting them in last place behind Singapore (43%), Canada (42%) and the US (38%). This means that over the next five years, UK leaders will have to go the extra mile to really steer the energy transition successfully, or risk falling behind their global counterparts. ‘Turn risk management into a strategic advantage’“The organisations that pull ahead over the next five years will be those that recognise the energy transition as a fundamental shift in how energy is produced, financed and consumed,” warned Malynn. “As we’ve seen, demand for energy is accelerating from all directions, and this transformation is about far more than decarbonisation alone.

The great energy transition: are you prepared?

Nearly 8 in 10 executives agree fires, floods and heatwaves are influencing where and how they operate

Almost 1 in 3 global leaders ranked energy transition-related supply delays and instability as a top-3 macro risk

3/4 of global executives surveyed are struggling to transition to non-carbon energy sources and meet net zero targets

Almost 3/4 agree the current economic climate is pushing sustainability down their priority list

3/4 say the diversity and complexity of global regulations are increasing operational risk

78%

32%

75%

74%

75%

Source: Beazley