‍

I’ve been working in the solar industry for two decades now and have seen firsthand how far we’ve come — in scale, efficiency, and our collective commitment to sustainability. But there’s one area that continues to challenge even the most sophisticated system operators: responding to extreme weather events.  

Now I lead the field operations team at SOLARCYCLE, which is built specifically to handle disaster recovery. When disaster strikes, I ensure we show up quickly, operate safely, and recycle the broken panels responsibly and cost-effectively.

‍

‍

Good storm response partnership starts in the field

I spent last week at a site in Texas that was recently hit by a severe hailstorm. Our thoughts are with the site owners, the teams on the ground, and the local communities affected. These events are more than operational disruptions — they are emotional and financial stressors for everyone involved.

When disaster hits, the ability to quickly recover depends on who you can call. Solar owner-operators need a reliable and cost-effective storm response partner that can provide the high-quality site services and ingenuity to remove broken panels quickly, process the high volumes of damaged modules often caused by storms efficiently, and navigate increasingly complex insurance and environmental compliance workflows.

This involves:

• Onsite services, panel removal, packaging, and loading damaged modules
• Rapid response trucking, dispatching a high volume of trucks daily. As many trucks as the project can load, we can provide
• Palletization with our proprietary, reuseable low-cost packaging solution that’s quick to mobilize, making recovery faster while significantly reducing the cost of recycling
• Strict adherence to all federal and local environmental compliance
• Certificates of Recycling and Environmental Impact Reports to support ESG goals and navigate insurance reimbursement

‍

‍Extreme weather is no longer a rare disruption

In 2024, the U.S. experienced 27 separate weather and climate disasters, each causing over $1 billion in damages, according to NOAA. For solar project owners and operators, more frequent and severe storms mean more threats to system uptime and long-term project economics. In just the past few years, we’ve supported some of the largest solar storm recovery efforts in the U.S., including several projects with more than 100,000 broken panels.

In the past 18 months alone, my team has supported 400+ projects across 30 states, successfully picking up over 2 million panels. We’re able to handle this kind of volume because we strategically grew our national footprint to ensure that 80% of U.S. solar installations are within a one-day truck drive of one of our locations. That reach is crucial. When damage occurs, timing is everything. The faster you can clear broken panels, the faster you can restore generation.

‍

‍

Preparation matters

The takeaway here is simple: storms will come. Project owners and operators can’t control the weather — but we can prepare to respond in ways that reduce costs, restore system operations fast, and protect the long-term value of solar assets.

If you haven’t already secured a recycling partner who has the expertise to navigate compliance, can mobilize instantly, secure high-volume pickups, support insurance documentation, and provide volume-based pricing, now is the time.

Contact our sales team to discuss how we can help you prepare for the worst with confidence.

‍