DNV tool predicts the chance of hail at future solar energy locations – SPE

DNV is offering a new service to solar developers that will assess the potential impact of hail on future solar projects in North America.

The research-backed service, developed in collaboration with Jupiter Intelligence, will provide users with the probability of a hail event for a specific location in the contiguous United States, as well as the probability of the size of the hail.

The service can cover the entire lifespan of a project, up to a maximum of 30 years. DNV said it will help project owners and developers better anticipate and mitigate risks, protect investments and ensure long-term viability.

Extreme hail events have caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to solar projects in North America. DNV said this leads to changes in insurance policies and threatens the financial stability of solar projects. The severity of hailstorms is expected to increase due to climate change, and research shows that hail events are shifting northward toward the central and eastern United States, where solar installations are densely packed.

“Ironically, solar energy development is now threatened by the very thing it is intended to mitigate – climate change – by enabling a transition to clean energy generation,” said Richard S. Barnes, regional president for energy systems North America at DNV. “Understanding and mitigating the risks of hailstorms through both technical and financial means will enable the solar industry to continue its current trajectory and take its place as a major energy source in the future.”