Tokio Marine Kiln (“TMK”), the leading specialist international insurer, today announced that it has partnered with CarbonChain, a startup building technology solutions, to measure greenhouse gas emissions to inform underwriting decisions.
TMK and CarbonChain began exploring this partnership in the summer of 2021 as part of a project within the Lloyd’s Lab, the innovation incubator of Lloyd’s. Following a successful trial using a small data set during the Lloyd’s Lab programme, TMK and CarbonChain launched the first phase of the project looking at a portfolio of approximately 2,000 companies.
As a first-of-its-kind initiative, TMK and CarbonChain aimed to develop a methodology framework to measure customers’ emissions and compare them with their industry and regional peers, translating this into a “carbon risk rating” that TMK could then take into account when considering each policy it is underwriting.
In future project phases, customers will be made aware of their ratings based on reported data or industry benchmarks. Customers who are not already measuring and reporting emissions data will subsequently be encouraged to do this to further improve industry transparency.
In the longer term, TMK and CarbonChain’s project will consider the plans that customers develop to reduce their emissions over time (in line with national, global, and industry targets) as well as the total amount of reduction in emissions achieved.
Brad Irick, CEO of TMK, said: “We are excited to be taking a leadership role in working with existing and future clients as they transition to a lower carbon economy through this important and timely partnership with CarbonChain. We recognise that the benefits of this technology extend beyond TMK and present an opportunity for the whole market and society more generally, so our next step will be to ensure wider engagement and participation.”
CarbonChain co-founder Roheet Shah said: “Accounting for greenhouse gas emissions is a new endeavour for most industries. TMK is pioneering this innovation for the insurance market, helping to establish standards and methodologies that the entire industry can build upon to achieve a lower carbon future.”
John Neal, CEO of Lloyd’s, said: “It’s great to see TMK partnering with CarbonChain through the Lloyd’s Lab and we are fully supportive of this initiative, which is line with our own ESG strategy and the guidance we have provided to the market to support them in their transition to a sustainable future.”