Aon boosts energy practice with 'key focus' on renewables

Re/insurance broker Aon has strengthened its global renewable energy network with two new offshore wind hires from Marsh, following a series of senior leadership appointments including a new global renewables CEO joining from Swiss Re in May.

Ray Spreadbury and Sarah Burston have been appointed as executive director and director, respectively, in Aon's offshore wind team within the Global Broking Centre (GBC).

Based in London, they will be reporting into the power team, led by James MacNeal.

Spreadbury has nearly three decades of insurance experience. He joins Aon from Marsh where he most recently served as global head - renewable energy, having held a number of senior positions during his 20-year tenure at the business. He began his career at Sedgwick Insurance Brokers.

Burston returns to Aon after almost three years in the public sector, having served as a risk manager in local government. She previously held the role of enterprise risk management senior consultant in Aon Global Risk Consulting.

James MacNeal, managing director of GBC construction and power at Aon, said: “The renewables industry is a key focus for us, with our offering underpinned by market-leading technical and specialty capabilities. These include risk engineering, contract review, broking and claims advocacy and alternative risk finance solutions, all of which help clients navigate and outperform in the face of managing risk and complexity.

"We are continuing to build a resilient and talented team that can deliver the full depth of Aon’s capabilities to our clients. I am very pleased to welcome Ray and Sarah to the team and am confident their breadth and wealth of expertise will prove invaluable as we continue to strengthen our renewable energy proposition globally.”

The new hires follow a series of senior leadership appointments to Aon’s Global Renewables network. Carol Stark was recently named as the US renewable energy leader and Willem Schrijver has joined Aon Netherlands as industry director, energy. Schrijver joins from Delta Lloyd, where he focused on renewable energy, including offshore wind and solar. In addition, Guido Benz will join Aon from Swiss Re in May as CEO, global renewables.

Aon said these appointments also align with the development of Aon’s Energy Transition Group, a partnership between power and energy, led by Euan Nicolson, the global CCO of the firm’s energy speciality. This integrated group brings together Aon’s wider industry capabilities and works closely with the firm’s expanding Global Renewables network, developing sustainable risk solutions for the evolving needs of clients involved in energy transition.

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