Lloyd’s chair says risks posed by space weather presents ‘significant threat’

Lloyd’s of London chairman Bruce Carnegie-Brown has said that the “risk posed by space weather presents a significant threat to our life on earth”.

A solar storm is a sudden and intense burst of radiation, with energetic particles blasted from the sun.

If large enough and directed towards Earth, the resulting space weather has the potential to severely damage critical infrastructure and create significant disruption across multiple industries.

Carnegie-Brown said that the risks desperately need to be understood and working with the space scientific community was vital.

“We have the capability to provide property cover and support resilience plans,” he said.

“Information is the most valuable currency in this market. If we are to underwrite the risk, we must understand it.

“The world is still unprepared for a Carrington-level event, experienced in 1859.

“There is much more to do to improve resilience. This summer will see the sun enter the maximum phase of its 11-year cycle.”

Report

Carnegie-Brown made the comments as Lloyd’s launched the seventh and last of its systemic risk scenario, highlighting the threat of a hypothetical solar storm.

Published yesterday (4 March 2025), the report explained a solar storm scenario using global gross domestic product, as it allows the model to calculate the global economic loss.

The weighted average was a $2.4tr global economic loss over a five-year period.

However, the global economic loss ranges from $1.2tr in the lowest severity scenario, up to $9.1tr in the most extreme scenario.

Rebekah Clement, Lloyd’s corporate affairs director, said: “Our research continues to highlight the need for businesses to be prepared and proactive against global risks.

“Historically extreme space weather has been rare, however, by equipping businesses, governments and insurers with data-based models we’re encouraging effective preparation stronger collaboration.”