Quanta Capital Holdings, an insurer that may put itself up on the sales block or close parts of its operation to new business, is downsizing its Bermuda office, understands.

Quanta earlier this month announced preliminary fourth quarter losses of up to $45 million, prompting ratings firm A.M. Best to downgrade its financial strength rating into the ?B? range, calling into question its future business prospects.

Since the announcement, Quanta has moved to sublet part of its Cumberland House office space. Quanta has been based in the Victoria Street building since shortly after it formed in 2003.

On a conference call with investors, after being hit by the downgrade, interim chief executive Robert Lippincott said: ?First and foremost, reducing our expense base is top priority.?

The Bermuda-based company, which also counts operations across the US and in the UK, said it expected to make staff reductions in the ?very near term? to realise between $9 million and $11 million in savings, before severance charges.

A Quanta spokesperson declined on Friday to say how many job cuts are being made overall, and how many of those are in Bermuda. And she said she could not speak to wider developments in the Bermuda office.

Quanta is making cost cuts after posting a preliminary loss estimate of between $40 million to $45 million, which it said took into account figures compiled internally under chief actuary Charles Kasmer and supported by outside actuary, Tillinghast Towers Perrin.

Auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers is still completing its review, Quanta said, including an audit of the company?s loss reserves, or how much it may need to set aside to pay losses that could materialise on policies sold.

Mr. Kasmer, when contacted on Friday, would not discuss company matters, and a company spokesperson said the company currently doesn?t have anything to add to information made public earlier this month.

Quanta is the only publicly listed Bermuda insurer to have not issued fourth-quarter earnings figures to investors. And it has not said when it will issue the report.