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Feature story

On the record with… Anne Aufrere, the Head of Arianespace's Financing and Insurance Department

March 3, 2010

Arianespace’s relationship with the space insurance sector is based on a long-term policy of open communications and transparency, which results in mutual trust between the company and the market’s key players. 

As part of its regular briefings to insurers and brokers, Arianespace today provided an update presentation during the World Satellite Risk Forum in Dubai.  Speaking from this international gathering, Anne Aufrere, Arianespace’s Head of Financing and Insurance Department, provides an overview of the market in the following “On the Record” interview.

Question: What is the importance of insurance for the commercial launch industry?

Anne Aufrere: Launch insurance is highly important, and is linked directly to the very large amounts of money involved in building and orbiting a satellite payload.  The investment to acquire and launch a medium-sized telecommunications spacecraft can very quickly reach $400 million – a total that includes about 12 percent for insurance on an Ariane 5-type launch, along with coverage for the satellite’s first year of operation in orbit.

The space insurance sector traces its roots to the 1965 launch of the world’s first commercial communications satellite, Early Bird, and has since grown into a very specific market with highly specialized players.  Due to its very specific technical nature, space insurance is handled separately from the aviation insurance marketplace.  There probably are a total of 20-25 companies involved in this activity, which includes both the insurers and brokers.

Question: How are Arianespace considered in the insurance sector today?

Anne Aufrere: Arianespace benefits from the best rates in the market, which is based on the excellent track record of our heavy-lift Ariane 5, both in terms of its launch success and payload delivery accuracy.
This is an important advantage for Arianespace.  Even with the higher launch cost that comes with an Ariane 5 compared to certain other vehicles, its lower insurance rate is clearly a plus from a competitive point of view. 

Arianespace’s launch activity also is the largest generator of insurance premiums due to our high level of Ariane 5 launch activity – with a record seven flights last year and another seven planned in 2010, many of which are dual-payload missions.  This will further increase when Ariane 5 is joined by Soyuz at the Spaceport in French Guiana.

Another aspect is our offer of complementary insurance coverage, called the Arianespace Launch Risk Guarantee, which provides indemnification in the event of a launch failure.  This creates additional capacity, which we feel is important especially with the high mission rate Arianespace continues to maintain.


Question: How does the insurance sector view the medium-lift Soyuz in its new operations from the Spaceport, as well the lightweight Vega launcher?

Anne Aufrere: Soyuz is considered very favorably because of this vehicle’s high degree of maturity and its well-proven performance.  Therefore we expect to see a convergence with the excellent Ariane 5 rates.

For Vega, many of its launches will involve institutional and government payloads, which probably will not have traditional insurance coverage.  However, there is an interest in Vega for some commercial satellites, and we plan to provide a detailed briefing on the new vehicle later this year in which we’ll discuss all aspects – allowing the insurance sector to make its own assessment.  One positive factor for Vega is a series of five development flights being organized by the European Space Agency, which will demonstrate the new launcher’s capabilities to the space community. 


Question: What did Arianespace present to the insurance community at today’s briefing in Dubai, which was organized in conjunction with the World Satellite Risk Forum?

Anne Aufrere: Consistent with our policy, today’s half-day presentation went into significant detail, including the industrialization and production status for Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega; an in-depth review of Ariane 5’s latest mission experience – from flight performance and injection accuracy to the on-board acoustic, vibration and shock environment; and an outlook for the upcoming service introduction of Soyuz and Vega at the Spaceport.

• See the press release for more information on Arianespace’s presence at the World Satellite Risk Forum.