The University of Louisiana at Lafayette and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Sandia National Laboratories will host the second annual STORMS Workshop Oct. 8-9. STORMS stands for Strategies and Technologies for Operationally Resilient and Maximally-available Solar.
The national workshop will bring together researchers, industry leaders, utilities, government agencies and other solar energy stakeholders to examine emerging weather threats to photovoltaic systems and ways to strengthen the resilience and reliability of solar energy infrastructure. It will be held at the Picard Center on the UL Lafayette campus.
UL Lafayette is home to the Louisiana Regional Test Center for Emerging Solar Technologies, part of a U.S. Department of Energy program overseen by Sandia National Laboratories. The national network evaluates photovoltaic systems and emerging technologies under different climate and weather conditions. UL Lafayette’s center contributes long-term testing in the region’s hot, humid and hurricane-prone environment.
“As one of only five Regional Test Centers in the country, hosting the STORMS workshop reinforces UL Lafayette’s role as a critical research partner in the emerging energy sector,” said Dr. Lelia Deville, assistant director of the Louisiana Solar Energy Laboratory. “Bringing developers, insurers, manufacturers and engineers together with national labs and university researchers keeps our research grounded in the challenges the solar industry is facing while advancing the science needed to solve them.”
The workshop will open with a keynote address from Michael Wehner of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, followed by presentations and discussions with experts from the solar energy industry and research community. Friday’s programming will include breakout sessions and a tour of the Louisiana Solar Energy Laboratory at Antoun Hall, the 4,500-square-foot nerve center of the University’s solar research facilities in University Research Park.
The inaugural STORMS workshop in 2025 was held at UL Lafayette and drew about 100 participants from across the United States and beyond.
Click here for registration information and additional details.
Photo caption: The Louisiana Solar Energy Laboratory is located in Antoun Hall, the 4,500-square-foot nerve center of UL Lafayette’s solar research facilities. (Photo credit: Doug Dugas / University of Louisiana at Lafayette)