France reaches 187 collective self consumption operations, says grid operator

New statistics from grid operator Enedis reveal that collective self consumption operations are rapidly developing in France. Enedis says that their number increased from only six in 2018 to at the end of March 2023 – a figure that has doubled in the last 12 months.

More than 2,200 consumers and more than 300 producers are now integrated into local electricity production representing a total power of 11 MW, largely of photovoltaic origin. The local authorities account for more than 100 of these communities.

Enedis provided the new numbers when French Minister for the Energy Transition Agnès Pannier-Runacher participated in the commissioning ceremony of the Partag’élec self consumption operations in Surzur, a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany, in northwestern France.

“I welcome the deployment of collective self consumption operations, which was made possible thanks to our support measures,” she stated. “This is an excellent lever for achieving our climate objectives while allowing consumers to have access to competitive electricity.”

The Partag’élec community, in operation since November, is one of 22 collective self consumption operations in Brittany, which is one of the most dynamic regions in this booming field. Led by Morbihan Energies, this community is connected to the public electricity distribution network managed by Enedis and is based on the Linky meter counting system, which certifies flows between producers and consumers.

The Partag’élec operation brings together 130 consumers, including 18 buildings in the municipality of Surzur, 107 individuals and 5 professionals. Together, they share electricity from a solar power plant made up of 680 photovoltaic panels with an electricity production capacity of 249 kW.