VDE Americas

When all hail breaks loose—have a plan. Don't gamble with your investment returns. VDE Americas is the world's leading expert on hail risk assessment for utility-scale solar farms. Join us.

"Hail not only impacts homes and vehicles, but also agriculture. Even small #hailstones can threaten crops, especially when windstorms turn them into projectiles that can strip plants of their leaves and bend their stalks, stunting their growth and rendering them susceptible to disease. There are counties in Nebraska where farmers’ number one concern is not drought, flooding, or wind damage, but #hail, says Gensini, who is also a lead scientist on ICECHIP. Some farmers even take out hail insurance. A newer vulnerability from hail is #solar farms, which are often built in flat, sunny areas throughout the Central Plains..." https://lnkd.in/gGwPEHHT

"Today, we are sometimes being called to investigate glass breakage at sites where modules seem to be failing under normal conditions of use. While I have not seen that many impacted sites, a lot of people within the broader community are seeing similar problems. We know this because the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and DurAMat Project share information regarding field failures relatively quickly."

We're #hiring a new Senior Engineer to join our technical advisory team. Work directly with solar project developers and financial institutions while enjoying work-from-home flexibility and great benefits.

Today's episode of the Clean Power Hour, hosted by Tim Montague, features Jon Previtali, Senior Principal Engineer at VDE Americas. As hail-related insurance claims skyrocket and premiums increase, the solar industry is searching for innovative solutions to protect investments. Jon discusses the growing challenge of hail damage in large-scale solar projects and explains how VDE Americas is developing new testing methods to accurately assess module resilience to hail damage. The conversation covers the limitations of current module testing standards, the importance of tracker angles in mitigating hail damage, and the development of sophisticated hail monitoring and stow protocols. https://lnkd.in/gY5tZZXv

"Laboratory testing has revealed that some negatively-doped, 'n-type' tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) and heterojunction (HJT) solar modules are susceptible to ultraviolet (UV) light-related damage and degradation. That could mean trouble down the line, if modules in the field begin to show UV-related performance loss. Manufacturers are implementing solutions at cell and module level." https://lnkd.in/gw4CsQH9

"The Treasury Department and IRS are on track to finalize a suite of regs implementing various clean energy tax provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169) before President Joe Biden departs the White House, according to a Treasury official." https://lnkd.in/gs_ZdY_P

On a local scale, tornadoes are the most destructive of all atmospheric phenomena. An EF-2 tornado, like the one that hit this solar farm, is characterized by wind speeds in the 113–157 mph range. This is a significant tornado capable of pushing over a railroad boxcar. https://lnkd.in/gtVDkHSC

You can now see climate risk data when shopping for a home on Zillow https://lnkd.in/eDpHytzn

ICYMI: “Although property insurance and warranties play a crucial role in mitigating [property damage] risks, they do not eliminate the perils associated with severe hailstorms. Insurance often does not cover all exposure, and warranties are subject to carve-outs, photovoltaic (PV) module design standard limitations, and burden of proof. Where PV module hail resilience is insufficient on its own to reduce the risk of hail damage to acceptable levels in utility-scale projects deployed using single-axis trackers, project stakeholders must use defensive hail stow procedures to enhance system-level resiliency.” https://lnkd.in/gYcda39S