The French Ministry of Energy, Ecology & Sustainable Development has announced the launch of a tender for 400 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) plants 250 kW and larger.

The tender is part of a doubling of French PV targets to 1 GW of annual installations, and follows on two tenders for PV plants smaller than 250 kW. The tender will favor PV plants developed on sites with degraded sites including brownfields.

Bank guarantees not required

Plants incorporating both innovative ground-mounted technologies, including concentrating photovoltaics (CPV), as well as mature PV technologies on carports and roofs will be eligible. The requirement of bank guarantees before submission of tenders has been removed, to avoid disadvantaging small and medium-sized enterprises.

The tender will also take into account the carbon footprint of projects and their contribution to research and development, emphasizing innovation, high efficiency cells, and facilities of high value.

France has a goal of 5.4 GW in 2020, as well as a goal to heat 7 million homes with solar thermal technology. The nation seeks to create 100,000 – 130,000 jobs through solar energy, including 20,000 in the solar industry.

2013-03-15 | Courtesy: France Ministry of Ecology, Energy and Sustainable Development | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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