Severe convective storms are a growing source of financial volatility for businesses and infrastructure owners. Globally, severe convective storms generated approximately $82 billion in economic losses and $61 billion in insured losses in 2025, with at least 21 billion-dollar economic loss events recorded. In the United States alone, severe convective storms caused $68 billion in economic losses and $52 billion in insured losses, with 19 billion-dollar insured events recorded. Solar power plants are particularly exposed to high-velocity winds, which can damage panels and equipment, disrupt operations and create additional financial pressures through PPA obligations and financing commitments.
Descartes’ parametric straight-line wind insurance provides solar power plant owners and operators with transparent, data-driven protection against wind events. By using wind speed measurements from Nextpower’s integrated weather stations, the solution captures hyper-local conditions at the insured site, helping reduce basis risk and align payouts more closely with the actual conditions experienced. The solution can provide up to $80 million per contract globally and $100 million in the U.S., with coverage available for single or multiple locations.
How it Works
- Site-Level Data Collection: Nextpower’s integrated meteorological stations continuously collect wind speed data directly at the insured solar power plant, providing hyper-local measurements of wind activity.
- Wind Event Monitoring: The relevant wind speed and percentage of area impacted are monitored against the parameters agreed in the policy.
- Independent Data Verification: Following an event, a third-party certification agent retrieves the relevant data and checks it for accuracy and errors.
- Trigger Assessment: Descartes assesses the verified wind data against the policy's predefined parameters to determine whether the trigger conditions have been met.
- Rapid Payout: Once the event and applicable payout have been confirmed, Descartes calculates and processes the payout, typically within weeks.
Why Choose Descartes’ Parametric Straight-Line Wind Insurance?
✔️ Hyper-Local Wind Data
The solution uses wind speed data collected directly from Nextpower’s integrated meteorological stations. By measuring conditions at the insured site, the product helps reduce basis risk and better reflect the wind conditions actually experienced by the solar plant.
✔️ Fast Access to Liquidity
Payouts can be processed within weeks, providing solar operators with liquidity while traditional insurance claims are still being assessed. This can help support reconstruction, debt repayments and tax-equity financing following a severe wind event.
✔️ Protection Beyond Physical Damage
Straight-line wind can generate financial losses that extend beyond equipment damage. The solution can provide liquidity for economic impacts including PPA penalties, revenue shortfalls and other financial consequences associated with wind-related disruption.
✔️ Integrated SCS Protection
In the United States, the straight-line wind solution can be combined with Descartes’ satellite-based tornado and radar-based hail products to provide broader severe convective storm protection.
Want to Learn More?
Download our product sheet (PDF) to:
- Learn more about our parametric straight-line wind solution for solar power plants, available locations, coverage and quote requirements.
- View an example use case for a Texas solar operator facing a significant wind/hail deductible.
- Discover how straight-line wind, tornado and hail coverage can be combined for comprehensive severe convective storm protection.
- Explore the data sources, trigger indices and claims process in our Frequently Asked Questions section.
Interested in a solution?
Contact our commercial team.
FAQ
Can I add hail and tornado covers for comprehensive SCS protection?
Yes. In the US, our straight-line wind product can be combined with our satellite-based tornado and radar-based hail products to provide Nextpower clients with complete SCS protection.
What indices are available?
Straight-line wind: % of area impacted and gust speed as measured by Nextpower’s integrated meteorological stations
Tornado: % of area impacted as detected by highresolution satellite imagery
Hail: % of area impacted and max hailstone diameter as detected by robust, third-party radar imagery
Which data sources do you use for the tornado and hail solutions?
Our parametric tornado product utilizes Planet Labs’ high-resolution satellite imagery to assess the percentage of the coverage area impacted.
Advanced techniques are used to accurately detect snapped or severely damaged panels. Our parametric hail product uses imagery from ground-based radars operated by local meteorological agencies. The Maximum Estimated Hail Size (MESH) is determined by the data provider through an automated system which combines imagery with surface observations and numerical weather prediction models.
Why opt for Descartes’ integrated parametric insurance solution?
The solution provides immediate, data-driven financial protection. By leveraging on-site wind speed data collected by Nextpower’s integrated meteorological stations, it reduces basis risk and better aligns payouts with actual site conditions, providing the rapid liquidity solar power plant owners and operators need to restore normal operations post event.
How does the claims process work?
1) The insured notifies their broker and Descartes that an event has occurred.
2) A third-party certification agent retrieves the data necessary for the claim and checks for any errors.
3) Descartes calculates and processes
