The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry reported on the damage to solar and wind power plants caused by Typhoon No. 10 and heavy rains in 2020 Oku-Noto at the Expert Meeting (Working Group on Disaster Countermeasures in Electrical Equipment) held on December 19.
Damage to electric poles… due to storm No. 10
(Source: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Source: Kyuden Group)
Typhoon No. 10 recorded a central pressure of 935 hPa and a maximum wind speed of 50 m/s as of 9:00 a.m. on August 28. It made landfall near the city of Satsumasendai at around 8:00 a.m. on August 29, traveled from Kyushu to Shikoku, and became a tropical cyclone at 12:00 a.m. on September 1. In the Kyushu Electric Power District, power outages affected about 260,000 homes at 11:00 a.m. on August 29, and full power was restored three days later at around 6:00 p.m. on September 1.
There were a total of 14 cases of solar power plant damage. Solar panels at a 1,400kW mega solar power plant (large-scale solar power plant) in Higashikushira Town, Kagoshima Prefecture were damaged and scattered. At a 1,997.2kW large-scale solar power plant in Miyazaki City, solar panels and racks were damaged, and panels were scattered. A 233.1kW medium-scale project in Kama City, Fukuoka Prefecture had damaged solar panels, while electric air conditioners (PCS) were damaged at 500kW and 249.9kW medium-scale projects in Kitakyushu City and Matsuzaka City, respectively.
In addition, solar panels and frames were damaged and panels were scattered at two low-voltage business locations in Miyazaki City and Hofu City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, as well as at a total of seven low-voltage business locations in Tsu City and Odai Town, Mie Prefecture. PCS were flooded or damaged.
There were two wind power plant failures: blade damage at the 17,500 kW facility in Minamisatsuma City, Kagoshima Prefecture, and the 1,980 kW facility in Nagashima Town, Kagoshima Prefecture.
Heavy rains in Oku-Noto damaged power distribution equipment due to landslides caused by linear rain bands on September 21, leaving approximately 6,700 households without power, mainly in Oku-Noto. Hokuriku Electric Power Transmission and Distribution responded to restore power from September 22, after the effects of the flooding had eased, and by September 26, power was restored except for hard-to-reach areas, and restoration efforts continued thereafter as roads were cleared. To date, no electrical accidents related to damage caused by heavy rain have been reported in the Hokuriku Electric Power service area.
