Idex will equip the Compagnie des Amandes casserie with photovoltaic panels made in France

A competitive and eco-responsible industrial tool

Launched in 2018 by the former Minister of the Economy Arnaud Montebourg and the entrepreneur François Moulias, the Compagnie des Amandes aims to relocate the “Made in France” production of almonds. As part of this ambitious project, the company invested more than twelve million euros in June 2022 to create a modern brewery of critical size and environmental excellence. It will be used by all producers in the sector and will ensure the best processing and marketing of their almond production.

Wishing to make its brewery exemplary in terms of energy and to anticipate future increases in energy costs, Compagnie des Amandes has signed a partnership with IDEX to equip its site with photovoltaic panels.

Solarization of the roof

With a total power of nearly 500 kWp, the photovoltaic panels made in France will be installed on the entire roof of the casserie. Through this partnership, Compagnie des Amandes and Idex are therefore going well beyond the law, which requires only 30%. In addition, the device should produce more than 600 MWh per year and would completely cover the electrical needs of the brewery.

In addition, 10 charging stations for electric vehicles will also be installed in the car parks for employees of the casserie.

The installation site will begin in September 2023 for delivery in the second quarter of 2024.

“At a time when reindustrialization is on everyone's lips, we are offering a very concrete example of this with the upcoming installation of our almond cracker in Signes. This project has a very strong local added value and will be at the forefront of ecological and energy exemplarity, in particular through the installation of a photovoltaic power plant on the roof. This 25-year partnership with IDEX is part of the company's strategy to have an eco-responsible local industrial tool with energy self-consumption. Finally, it is very significant for us because it brings together agricultural and energy imperatives”, says François Moulias, Managing Director of Compagnie des Amandes.

“Our teams are proud to have been chosen for an initiative of this level of requirement, in order to produce the electricity necessary to relaunch almond production in France. The design of this infrastructure is at the forefront of French know-how and emblematic from an ecological point of view. Because equipping a roof with solar panels is a smart way to produce renewable and local energy, without any investment cost or artificialization of the soil,” adds Édouard Roblot, director of low-carbon buildings at IDEX.