The French solar market reaches an unprecedented record by crossing the barrier of 3 GW connected over one year

The following conclusions can be drawn:

• The connection volume in the 4th quarter of 2023 stands at 921 MW[1], up compared to the volume of the 3rd quarter of 2023 (776 MW). The capacity connected during the year 2023 amounts to 3.164 MW.
• Compared to the 3nd trimester, this 4rd trimester is marked:
  • by a drop in the “self-consumption” segment (total or partial), remaining at a very high level with more than 53.000 connected installations
  • by a drop in the domestic installations segment (<9 kW), with 187 MW connected,
  • by a slight increase in the medium roof segment (9 to 100 kW), with 109 MW connected,
  • by a sharp increase in the large roof segment (100 to 250 kW), with a connected volume of 242 MW, which is an absolute record.
  • by stability in the very large roof segment (250 kW to 1 MW), with a connected volume of 14 MW,
  • by a sharp increase in the segment of large installations (1 MW and more), with 338 MW connected,
• The share of photovoltaic electricity in gross electricity consumption in France is 2,77% in the 4th quarter of 2023.
• The queue on the distribution network is once again marked by an increase compared to the previous quarter. The queue on the transmission network increased by 1,8 GW over the year 2023. We therefore observe that the stock of projects reaches 21,5 GW at the end of this 4th quarter of 2023.
• The market price of electricity being lower in this 4th quarter than in previous quarters, we observe a reversal of the impact on public charges, it has become negative.

For Antoine HUARD, President of France Territoire Solaire: “Since photovoltaic solar energy began to be deployed in France at the end of the 2000s, the capacity of new connected installations has never reached such a volume: nearly 3,2 GW in a single year, a figure remarkable when compared to the average annual volume connected over the decade 2011-2020 (around 900 MW/year). However, this performance should not encourage euphoria, when we put it into perspective with the annual deployment rate of our neighbors, whether Germany (14,1 GW in 2023), Netherlands (4,1 GW) or Spain (8,2 GW). Faced with growing and massive needs for electricity under the combined effect of reindustrialization and the electrification of uses, the rise in power of new renewable capacities in general and solar in particular, is becoming an absolute necessity – and a pace of 3 GW per year will not be enough. »

The complete edition is available on the France Territoire Solaire website: www.franceterritoiresolaire.fr

[1] NB: The 2023 cumulative figure presented by ENEDIS to date stands at 3.135 MW. Our analysis by difference in stock from one quarter to the next shows a 2023 cumulative of 3.164 MW, which highlights a delta of 29 MW, or 2%.

The figures from this Observatory concern continental France (ENEDIS and RTE), they are slightly different from the CGDD figures, because the Observatory does not have access to connection and queue data from local distribution companies (ELD ), the latter not being published.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.