France’s total renewables capacity reached 54,690MW at the end of June 2020 up by 2431MW over the past year, according to figures compiled by the French renewables association SER, grid operator RTE and other organisations.
In the second quarter of 2020, 333MW of new renewables capacity was connected to the French grid, with wind and solar accounting for 159MW and 172MW respectively.
Renewable energy contributed 33.2% to France’s electricity consumption during the second quarter of 2020, compared with 30.7% in the same quarter in 2019.
The increase was due to more installed capacity and record levels of solar photovoltaic production, against the trend of reduced electricity demand due to the pandemic.
France’s wind capacity hit 16,930MW on 30 June, increasing by 1236MW over the year.
France’s Pluriannual Energy Programming (PPE) is targeting 24,100MW of installed onshore wind by the end of 2023.
Installed solar PV capacity reached 9,912MW at the end of June, with 972MW connected during the past 12 months.
The PPE aims for an installed solar PV capacity to reach 20,100MW by the end of 2023.