France

The Sun Horizon consortium has started to collect performance data on two pilot projects that combine heat pumps with solar systems using hybrid panels on homes in Riga, Latvia. The solution features a heat pump for space heating and domestic hot water and PVT panels to produce power for heating and domestic appliances, with excess power fed to the grid.

A report published by BloombergNEF for the COP26 climate change summit has listed global commitments by cities, states, provinces and nations to end the sale of new fossil-fueled vehicles but, with 2035 estimated as the cut-off date for zero-emission roads by mid century, policymakers need to be more ambitious.

France has announced a new 10-measure plan to facilitate solar deployment, featuring new and existing provisions. It is designed to support the installation of more than 3 GW per year throughout the country by the end of 2025.

The Euro trade body has promised to monitor the developing solar jobs market annually from now on, and pointed to Poland’s position at the top of the tree of EU member states for PV jobs last year as evidence the technology can still benefit from legislative backing.

The 240 kW facility was built with the support of German mounting system provider Next2Sun.

Developed by French start-up EODev, the 100 kVa system is equipped with fuel cells manufactured by Toyota. The generator has a power of 110 kVA and its lifetime is guaranteed for 15,000 hours.

Spanish company Axial Structural is introducing a new type of tracker for agrivoltaic installations. The product can be adapted to various ground conditions and gradients, with programmable to optimize light and shade for different crops in different climates.

The provisions for a fixed feed-in tariff (FIT) for all PV systems up to 500 kW in size have finally been published in France’s Official Journal – after an agonizing two year wait. pv magazine France provides the low down on tariffs, caps, carbon criteria, and integration.

Roctool, a French production equipment supplier, has teamed up with the CEA-Liten research institute to develop 300 mm x 300 mm solar modules based on recycled, bio-based materials via a novel manufacturing process. The first prototypes will be unveiled over the next few months.

PV project developers can secure France’s feed-in tariff without participating in tenders.