A.M. Best has affirmed the financial strength rating of “A” (Excellent) and the long-term issuer credit rating of “a+” (Excellent) of Castle Harbour Insurance and Harrington Sound Insurance, the captives of Schlumberger. The outlook of these credit ratings is stable. The rating agency says the ratings reflect the balance sheet strength and risk-adjusted capitalisation of both Bermuda-based captive companies, which was assessed at the strongest level according to Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio. In addition, A.M. Best determines the companies to have a strong operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management. This is in relation to their capacity as captive insurers for Schlumberger, a technology provider for reservoir characterisation, drilling, production and processing for the oil and gas industry. The ratings also acknowledge the strategic importance of both Castle Harbour and Harrington Sound in providing bespoke insurance coverage for Schlumberger and its subsidiaries. A.M. Best notes that although each captive has relatively large limits in its designated coverages for general liability and property, they also write a broad range of business and have “considerable” geographic diversification. Finally, the ratings also considered how the captives benefit from Schlumberger’s broader integrated enterprise risk management framework, which defines risk controls and optimises capital to provide financial flexibility.
