EDF commissions 20MWp FPV solar-hydro project in France

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Outside of Europe, EDF secured a 240MWp floating solar project co-located with hydropower in Laos. Image: Sungrow Floating.

French utility EDF Renewables has opened its first floating solar (FPV) plant in a hydro reservoir facility in the French Alps.

With a total installed capacity for the solar array of 20MWp, this marks the first project for EDF that combines both solar PV and hydroelectric power generation at the same site, which is located at the Lazer dam hydropower plant, in the southeast of France.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

The project – the first for the company in France – comprises 50,000 solar panels and will double the renewable electricity generation at the site.

Both the anchoring and floating system will adapt to the reservoir’s water levels without any impact on its operation.

Launched in 2017, the project was awarded in a call for proposals from the French Energy Regulatory Commission in 2018 before construction began in 2021.

Bruno Bensasson, senior executive VP of Renewable Energies at EDF Group, said: “To achieve this first for France, EDF Renewables drew on the expertise it has developed at international level, with four floating solar power plants already constructed in Israel and the USA.”

Speaking to PV Tech last week at Intersolar Europe, in Munich, Jasper Lemmens, senior consultant of solar energy at DNV and Magnus Johannesen, engineer, environmental loading and response energy systems at quality assurance company DNV highlighted France as one of the emerging European markets moving ahead in terms of FPV regulation that is expected to boost its uptake in the coming years.

Outside of Europe, EDF secured in 2021 a solar-hydro co-located project which will see the development of a 240MWp FPV project in Laos.

Read Next

June 6, 2025
France has registered zero or negative energy prices for 90% of days in May 2025, according to data from energy storage developer Storio Energy.
May 28, 2025
The German state of North Rhine-Westphalia has launched a Federal Council initiative to accelerate the development of floating solar (FPV) on artificial lakes.
May 21, 2025
Installation of the anchoring system for what has been badged the world’s first floating offshore solar-wind project has been completed.
May 13, 2025
The average value of a solar PPA signed in Europe in the first quarter of 2025 was just 1.3% higher than in the previous quarter, according to LevelTen.
May 6, 2025
Building floating PV (FPV) projects on just 10% of the world’s water reservoirs could almost single-handedly meet global electricity demand.
April 28, 2025
Swiss renewable power developer Axpo and EDF Renewables Hellas have signed a power purchase agreement (PPAs) for 102MW of solar capacity.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
June 17, 2025
Napa, USA
Upcoming Webinars
June 30, 2025
10am PST / 6pm BST
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece