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Green Globe: France looks to add more than 2 GW of solar capacity

SNL Image

Workers install solar panels at the Constantine solar farm in Cestas, in southwestern France. France aims to lower its carbon footprint by developing new renewable energy sources.
Source: Associated Press

Aiming to increase its renewable energy sources, France plans to hold new tenders for over 2 GW of solar photovoltaic capacity, according to Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition Elisabeth Borne.

The tenders for ground-mounted facilities are scheduled in January 2020 for 850 MW and in June of the same year for 1 GW. Another tender will be held in February 2020 for 300 MW of rooftop projects, Renewables Now reported.

France aims to increase its current 9.1-GW solar capacity to between 35.6 GW and 44.5 GW in 2028. The tenders are expected to increase the country's total installed capacity by more than 20%. In January, France released a draft 10-year energy strategy plan to double its overall renewable capacity from 48.6 GW in 2017 to 74 GW in 2023 and 113 GW by 2028, according to Reuters. Most of that growth is expected to come from wind and solar.

Interest in floating solar power farms is growing in South Korea, where space for large solar arrays is limited, the Korea Joongang Daily reported.

The idea is not completely new: state-owned water resource management agency K-water completed a 3-MW floating solar farm in 2017. Another facility with a capacity of 18.7 MW was opened in November 2018.

More recent plans are more ambitious. In July, the government approved a $3.92 billion plan for the 2.1-GW Saemangeum floating solar farm, which is expected to be completed in 2025. The project is expected to help create a $2.13 billion market for domestic solar and equipment producers, according to Business Korea.

South Korea currently ranks third, behind China and Japan, in terms of floating solar capacity. Other nations are also exploring the technology. Malaysia-based Pestech International Bhd. signed a memorandum of understanding with China's Sungrow Power Supply Co. Ltd. to develop floating photovoltaic solutions in Southeast Asia, according to pv magazine.

"The parties intend to explore the possibility of complementing each other’s core competencies, technical capabilities and references to cooperate jointly on exploring floating solar system solution, localization of parts and other possible co-operations in Southeast Asia," Pestech said in a filing with the Malaysian stock exchange.

Botswana and Namibia are the latest countries looking to tap the solar potential of southern Africa, with a mega-solar power project. The proposed facility, supported by the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Energy, could add up to 5,000 MW of new solar power over the next two decades.

According to the World Economic Forum, the project makes sense because the countries have some of the highest solar irradiance potential in Africa. Moreover, both have flat, uninhabited land not currently used for productive economic productive activity.

Developing the mega-project could help meet the 24,000 MW of unmet demand for power in the region by 2040. Aside from the domestic markets in Namibia and Botswana, 12 other countries in southern Africa could be connected to the project through new or upgraded transmission infrastructure.

Elsewhere

* The government of Bangladesh secured $185 million in financing from the World Bank to add about 310 MW of renewable energy generation capacity.

* China Huaneng Group Co. is looking at taking private its Hong Kong-listed wind power generator, Huaneng Renewables Corp., as part of a plan to create a new energy unit, Bloomberg News reported.

* Adani Green Energy Ltd. has agreed to acquire 205 MW of operating solar assets of Essel Green Energy Private Ltd. and Essel Infra Projects Ltd. in Punjab, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh in India.

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