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Technical advisory VDE Americas has revised its hail risk model using new wind data, aiming to enhance prediction accuracy for photovoltaic installations. According to a report from PV-Tech, the organization’s recent meteorological analysis indicates wind speeds during hailstorms can be higher than prior estimates, potentially elevating damage risks for solar plants.
Hail is identified as a primary catastrophic threat to photovoltaic facilities, particularly as more large-scale projects are developed in susceptible areas like the United States. The increasing severity of hailstorms, linked to climate change, further amplifies this risk.
VDE’s methodology involved filtering weather records to isolate events where hailstorms passed directly over U.S. weather stations. This process revealed that wind speeds in certain locations were double earlier figures. Integrating these more precise wind measurements is intended to make risk assessments more representative of actual storm conditions.
An expert consultant noted that wind alters the fall angle and impact energy of hail, making its inclusion in loss models crucial for effective field damage prediction. The updated model is described as improving the characterization of wind speed and direction during hail events.
The analysis found that severe convective storms with hail large enough to typically damage solar panels occurred at or near many utility-scale solar sites. Although reported catastrophic losses were lower in 2025 than in prior years, potentially due to wider use of protective stow protocols and weather alerts, hail remains the industry’s top catastrophic peril.
VDE Americas leadership stated the enhanced model provides stakeholders with data to improve asset resilience and reduce potential financial losses. They noted that while solar power leads global new electricity capacity growth, the combination of wind and hail poses a substantial operational threat without proper planning.
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