Neoen has been awarded 119MW of solar projects in the latest call for tenders held by the French government’s Energy Regulation Commission.
With seven projects ranging from 5MW to 30MW, Neoen ranks second in terms of capacity awarded in this session and remains, with 479MW, the top awardee for the whole PPE2 call of tenders that began two years ago.
In developing these sites, Neoen worked closely with local authorities and stakeholders in the Grand Est, Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Occitanie regions of France. The number and diversity of sites demonstrate Neoen’s ability to develop ground-mounted projects across the country, said the developer.
Construction of these solar farms will be carried out by French EPC experts and is expected to be phased between 2024 and 2028.
Among the seven winning projects in the ground-mounted solar category, the 21MW Lapenne array will be one of the first solar agrivoltaic plants in the department of Ariege.
By combining sheep farming and renewable electricity production on the same site, it will ensure diversified revenue for the farmer. The project will be overseen annually by French farming institute IDELE, one of Neoen’s long-term partners.
Noel’s French development director Guillaume Decaen said: “I congratulate our team for this new success and thank all our stakeholders for their confidence and support.
“We are proud to be the top awardee in the government calls for tenders launched in December 2021 and a major contributor to the decarbonisation of our country’s electricity.”
The developer’s chairman and chief executive Xavier Barbaro added: “These awards are another demonstration of our ability to develop projects that are both competitive for our clients and value creating for our shareholders.
“With a total of 119MW in this session, Neoen strengthens its position as number one independent producer of renewable energy in France, a key country for us. Thanks to the quality of our solar, wind and storage projects, we will further accelerate our growth, in France and around the world.”