Expected 2020 French pv market

According to BloombergNEF’s conservative forecast, 15 countries were expected to become GW markets in 2019. Still, pv manufacturers, developers and service providers have been looking for new sources of growth. To kick-start the year of 2020, this article will highlight “fast growing” of French solar markets, to assess the opportunities and potential risks.

France has installed more than 1.5GW

France will see a big increase in installed pv capacity in 2020, thanks to the regulator CRE, called for in 2018, when about 1.25 GW of large solar power had already been allocated and was due to be grid-connected by the end of this year. Many of these projects are still struggling to secure land, similar to agricultural pv solutions, which could create large areas of land.

In terms of technological innovation, two-sided projects are used increasingly, and digital technologies such as energy management, data collection and virtual batteries are on the rise.

From the view of regulatory, the French solar ministry has asked the government to limit rooftop solar systems to no more than 500 KW, which could mean that smaller pv projects will no longer be subject to tender, and current restrictions on the development of small projects could be lifted.

Perhaps the most surprising change in France in 2020 will be the birth and development of the PPA market. In 2019 the first PPA deal was signed by big energy consumers such as SNCF, the railway operator, Boulanger group and CréditMutuel.

SER, the French pv association, said that about 1GW of pv were connected to the grid in 2019, if all go well, more than 1.5GW are expected in 2020. Enerplan, another French solar trading body agrees with that.