From master resources
Steve Gorham
“Due to hail and other weather damage, insurance premiums for solar facilities have skyrocketed, rising as much as 400% in some cases. In addition, policy coverage is capped at $10-15 million, requiring system developers to obtain multiple policies to try to cover their project.
Wind and solar's share of U.S. electricity generation has been growing over the past two decades. State and federal mandates and subsidies drive the expansion of renewable energy because of their inherent dilute and intermittent nature. But it’s clear that renewable energy faces a third blow: They are fragile and susceptible to weather damage and destruction.
Currently, 23 states have mandated net-zero electricity by 2035 at the earliest. The proportion of wind energy and solar energy in U.S. electricity generation has grown from nearly zero in 2000 to 14.1% in 2023 (wind energy accounts for 10.2%, solar energy accounts for 3.9%).
weather risk
Wind and solar systems are located on ridgelines, plains and offshore, and are subject to weather impacts that typically don't affect coal and natural gas generators inside buildings. Additionally, these systems require approximately 100 times the land area of traditional generators to provide the same average power output, increasing the chance of storm damage. As more and more systems are deployed, incidents of corruption continue to increase.
In May 2019, a large hailstorm in West Texas destroyed 400,000 solar modules at the Midway Solar Project, accounting for approximately 60% of the facility. The project is only one year old. Rebuilding the system cost the insurance company more than $70 million.
On June 23, 2023, the Scottsbluff solar system in western Nebraska was destroyed. Baseball-sized hail fell at 150 miles per hour, destroying much of the 14,000-panel system. The system operated for only four years of its 25-year life and had to be completely rebuilt.
Insurance claims for solar damage due to hail currently average about $58 million per claim. Hail damage claims have increased to account for approximately 54% of solar insurance loss claims. Analysis by Iowa State University shows that severe hail (more than an inch in diameter) is experienced for 20 to 30 days each year in the Great Plains states, which stretch from North Dakota to Texas and from Colorado to Indiana.
“Fighting Jays Solar” will be put into operation in July 2023, 40 miles northwest of Houston, Texas. Less than a year later, on March 15 of this year, hail destroyed much of the system, with repair costs estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars. The system has not yet been fully constructed.
Hail is not the only weather hazard faced by solar installations. This fall, tornadoes associated with Hurricane Milton destroyed much of a solar farm in Lake Placid, Florida's Sylvan Shores. The facility only operated for about five years.
Future insurance and liability
Insurance premiums for solar installations have skyrocketed, in some cases as much as 400%, due to hail and other weather damage. Additionally, policy coverage is capped at $10-15 million, requiring system developers to obtain multiple policies to try to cover their projects.
The federal government has been pushing for the installation of wind systems along the U.S. East Coast. Offshore wind systems are being built or planned in Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Rhode Island and Virginia. But offshore wind must operate in one of the world's harshest environments, buffeted by wind, waves, lightning and salt spray that is highly corrosive to man-made structures.
To date, most offshore wind systems have been deployed in China, Europe and Vietnam. These systems are susceptible to weather damage. Turbines deployed along Asian coasts were struck by typhoon debris. Eighty percent of turbines installed in Europe's North Sea require repairs due to weather damage.
The London Array in eastern England, the world's largest offshore wind system, required extensive repairs after just five years of operation. Danish wind power operator Ørsted needs to repair submarine cables for its offshore wind power system in the North Sea, at a cost of more than $100 million.
But turbines located on the U.S. East Coast must withstand harsh weather, more severe than offshore turbines in Europe. Tropical storms, hurricanes and nor'easters regularly sweep across coastal sites where new offshore wind systems are being planned.
For example, historical data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show that over the past 170 years, 26 hurricanes and 51 tropical storms have passed through New Jersey's coastal waters, with nearly five storms per decade. Wind turbines are vulnerable to these weather systems.
When Hurricane Maria passed through Puerto Rico in 2018, blades were torn off many turbine towers. East Coast wind systems may suffer the same fate.
Wind systems are designed to protect wind towers and blades during strong winds. When wind speeds exceed 55 mph, the braking system stops the rotor to prevent turbine damage. The tower blades are also “feathered” or oriented so that they no longer face the wind.
But near the eye of a hurricane or tropical storm, violent winds can change direction so quickly that disaster prevention systems cannot respond. The result will be destroyed blades and damaged towers.
in conclusion
In July, a 351-foot-long offshore wind blade broke apart and washed up on a beach in Nantucket, Massachusetts. The beach was closed and cleanup crews collected six truckloads of fiberglass and plastic debris from a single damaged blade. Wind power generation is temporarily suspended.
Residents, beachgoers, fishermen and local businesses posted signs, complained to the media and spoke at board hearings. But this is just a turbine blade. Imagine the outcry when an entire offshore system is devastated by a hurricane, creating mountains of beach debris in Myrtle Beach, Virginia Beach, Atlantic City, or Long Island?
Media headlines claim that weather is becoming more extreme due to human-caused climate change. But to combat this problem, we are advised to install more and more wind and solar systems, which are fragile and susceptible to severe weather. Incidents of weather-related damage to wind and solar installations will continue to increase.
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Steve Goreham is a speaker on energy, environment and public policy. His books include bestsellers Green Collapse: The coming failure of renewable energy.
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