France set to shine with €1.5bn solar programme

The French government has announced plans for a major €1.5bn (£1.3bn) solar energy building programme that will see more than 200MW of new capacity added over the next two years.

According to Associated Press reports, ecology minister Jean-Louis Borloo said the government wants to see solar farms built in every region, not just the south of the country where most of the country's solar industry is currently concentrated.

He added that the government was aiming to have 300MW of capacity online by 2011, a more than fourfold increase on the current 69MW of capacity.

The programme will see France attempt to close the gap on its neighbours, Spain and Germany, both of which have established themselves in the top three solar markets in the world alongside the US as a result of generous feed-in tariffs.

Borloo said that the government would aim to encourage new solar projects by reducing the red tape surrounding solar farms and making it easier for developers to gain planning permission.

The new building programme was announced last Friday, on the same day as French energy firms Caisse des Dépôts and Solairedirect flicked the switch on their new 4.2MW solar PV farm in Vinon-sur-Verdon, Provence.

The facility is the first from a joint venture between the two companies that aims to build three other solar plants with more than 38MW of capacity by the end of next year.

The French announcement came days after the Australian government announced it too is to initiate a major solar building programme that will see 1,000MW of capacity built by 2015.