According to the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, insurers are heavily exposed to the climate crisis. Within the equity, corporate bond, loans and mortgage portfolios, the share of assets that are most exposed to transition risks range between 29% (in Europe and Africa) and 42% (in Latin America). Immediately following a 1-in-200-year natural catastrophe event, insurers’ capital coverage ratios could decline by 34% on average, creating a “significant capital management challenge” if it becomes difficult for insurers to quickly raise capital, disrupting reinsurance markets and reducing reinsurance capacity.

The UK should help kickstart the development of salt-cavern hydrogen storage to meet its goal of net zero by 2050, says the Royal Society. Work on constructing the caverns should begin immediately, the new report states, where parts of the UK have the right geology for the storage projects. Large-scale electricity storage is needed to smooth out variations in wind and solar, particularly long-term variations in wind. Storing most of the surplus as hydrogen, in salt caverns, would be the cheapest way of doing this, says the report.

The US needs to triple transmission investment and use Grid-Enhancing Technologies (GETs) to support this goal, concludes a white paper by Brattle Group and the Watt Coalition. There are more than 10,000 projects adding up to over two terawatts of new capacity awaiting grid connection. When compared to major new transmission investments, GETs can be implemented much faster and often for a small fraction of the cost. GETs enhance transmission investments, acting more as a tool to augment, akin to a GPS or tire air pressure sensor making driving easier—not by themselves replacing the car.