France Deploys 484 MW of PV Capacity in First Quarter

France deploys 484 MW of PV capacity in first quarter.

By the end of March, France’s cumulative installed PV capacity had reached 14.6 GW.
The French Ministry of Ecological Transition reported that around 484 MW of new PV systems were connected to the grid between January and March, compared with 736 MW in the same period last year.

Installations above 250 kW accounted for about 47% of the new solar capacity. Installations under 9 kW accounted for 86% of new grid-connected installations and 13% of all new capacity additions.

By the end of March, France’s cumulative installed PV capacity had reached 14.6 GW, of which mainland France had a total of 13.8 GW. Since the beginning of the year, the total capacity of solar projects that have applied for grid connection and have been queued has increased by 16% to 13.4 GW, of which 2.9 GW have signed grid connection agreements.

Solar capacity in the first quarter of this year was 3.2 TWh compared to 2.4 TWh in the same period in 2021. Solar power accounted for 2.2% of France’s electricity consumption, down from 3.7% a year earlier.

New-Aquitaine, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur accounted for 65% of the new grid connection in the first quarter. These regions have the largest installed capacity, accounting for 66% of France’s cumulative grid-connected electricity as of the end of March.