DNV launches new service to respond to climate change-driven hail risk for solar PV

DNV today launched a new service to provide solar photovoltaic developers actionable, verified assessments of large hail risk across North America. DNV has partnered with Jupiter Intelligence, the trusted leader in climate risk analytics, to leverage its gold standard climate science for a first of its kind, robust statistical approach to evaluating hail risk due to climate change, both today and in the future.  

Extreme hail events have caused hundreds of millions of dollars of damage at solar PV projects in North America, even in areas historically less prone to hailstorms. It is estimated that in Texas alone there has been more than $600 million dollars of damage due to hail in the past two to three years. The increase in resulting damage, as well as new uncertainty about hail-prone areas, has precipitated changes to insurance policies and threatens the financial viability of solar projects in these regions.  

A leading scientific viewpoint expects hailstorm severity will increase with further climate change. Relying on historical data no longer provides an accurate assessment of hail risk, especially when it comes to the size of the hail and the location of the hailstorms. Recent research on hail patterns indicates that over the last several decades severe hail events are shifting northward in the central and eastern U.S., areas with a high density of installed solar PV. DNV’s new service aims to help the solar industry understand actual hail risk now and over the course of project lifetimes, up to 30 years into the future. It will provide the probability of a hail event for a specific location within the contiguous U.S. as well as the probability of the size of the hail itself, enabling project owners and developers to better anticipate and mitigate risks to their projects. 

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

By providing precise, forward-looking data, DNV's new service empowers solar developers and project owners to make informed decisions that protect their investments and ensure long-term viability. As the industry faces the dual challenge of accelerating clean energy deployment while adapting to the very climate changes it seeks to combat, DNV’s research-backed approach offers a path forward —strengthening resilience and securing the role of solar power as a cornerstone of our sustainable energy future.