Solar development in France offers great solar potential due to the increased efforts outlined by Macron to accelerate solar production. By 2050, France aims to increase the current solar production by tenfold, thus exceeding 100GW.
In February 2022, the president acknowledged that France has “fallen behind” and aims to increase production through rooftop and ground PV panels. To achieve this goal, the country will need to develop 5GW of solar energy per year.
1) Engie – Paris, France
The Parisian-based group are one of the key European players in the development of solar energy. Engie accounts for 9% of solar energy in France including solar parks, battery projects, and centralized/decentralized production.
Currently, the energy giants have an installed capacity of 717MW with a further 120MW under construction. One of their latest projects, the 22MW Volgelsheim site will be commissioned in August 2022 having being developed by the group.
2) Neoen – Paris, France
Since their inception in 2008, Neoen have become one of the leading French developers of solar energy. To date, they have an installed capacity of 1GW worth of French solar.
In 2021, the French group were awarded 130MW of solar in French solar tenders. The 9 solar projects were awarded as part of the French government’s CRE 4 program. Neoen were responsible for the development of France’s largest solar plant, the Cestas site which has an installed capacity of 300MW.
3) Boralex – Kingsey Falls, Canada
The Canadian solar, wind, and battery developed has been operating for more than 30 years. Boralex has developed solar projects across the US, Canada, and France. To date, the group has developed five French solar parks.
In December 2021, the group commissioned the development of their first floating solar park. The 12MW solar project is located in the Chapeliers basin and was awarded as part of the CRE 4 program.
Image Source: Unsplash, 13.05.2022
