Solar Risk Assessment

The eighth annual Solar Risk Assessment arrives at an inflection point for the energy transition. The world passed 50 million EVs on the road in 2024; data center electricity use is on track to quintuple by 2040; and global cooling demand is projected to triple by 2060. All of that demand is landing on a grid that now counts on solar, wind, and storage.

As the industry’s footprint has grown, so has the risk picture. This year’s report is organized around three themes: Resilience, Reliability, and Emerging Risks.

The seventh annual Solar Risk Assessment arrives at a pivotal moment for the renewable energy industry. In the past year, we’ve seen solar and wind energy production overtake coal for the first time in the US energy mix, marking a historic milestone in our clean energy transition. We installed nearly 50GW of solar capacity in 2024 alone, shattering records and expectations. As these clean energy sources become increasingly central to our grid reliability, the resilience and performance of solar, wind, and battery assets has never been more critical to our continued success.

The renewable energy sector faces evolving challenges across multiple fronts. Climate impacts have intensified, with hail damage, flooding, and wildfire becoming more frequent and severe. Operational risks persist as PV assets continue to underperform against forecasts. Battery storage safety concerns have heightened following recent incidents, highlighting the need for better thermal management and early detection systems. Fire losses are significantly driven by overgrown vegetation. Risks can be mitigated by strict vegetation management (especially around inverters, transformers, and combiner boxes), proper wire management and coordination with local fire departments. Meanwhile, cybersecurity threats have grown more sophisticated as our industry becomes increasingly reliant on connected monitoring systems.

This year’s report highlights objective industry research on these risks.