France added 3.5 GW of solar capacity in the first nine months (9M) of 2024, a 52.2% increase from 2.3 GW during the same period of 2023.

At the end of September 2024, the country’s cumulative solar capacity reached 23.7 GW, including 22.9 GW in mainland France.

In Q3 2024, the country added 1,357 MW of solar capacity, a 66.3% year-over-year (YoY) increase from 816 MW during the same quarter in 2023. Installations grew by 19.9% from the previous quarter’s 1,131 MW.

The installation numbers for the quarter are provisional and are likely to be revised in the following quarters.

About 34% of the newly connected capacity included installations of system sizes more than 500 kW. Smaller installations, less than 9 kW, represent 20% of the new power connected.

New solar installations in 9M totaled 193,386 compared to 159,444 during 9M 2023. The project pipeline in the country has increased by 68% since the last quarter of 2023 to reach 37.6 GW, including 11.2 GW with a signed connection agreement.

The Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Occitanie, and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions contributed 48% of the newly connected power in France. These regions also lead in installed capacity, accounting for 52% of the country’s total solar power as of Q3 2024.

Self-consumption of solar power continues to be on the rise, with 56.4% of photovoltaic installations (13.8% of installed capacity) being fully or partially self-consumed. This share increased by 2.8% as compared to the previous quarter.

In Q3, 579 GWh of solar energy was self-consumed by producers, accounting for 6.4% of the quarter’s solar production. Installations with total self-consumption amounted to 130 GWh, representing 23% of the total self-consumed electricity.

France aims to add between 35 GW and 44 GW of installed solar capacity by 2028 under its latest energy policy targets.

In the first quarter, the country added 1 GW of solar photovoltaic capacity, up 66% from the same period last year and reaching 21.1 GW.

The country’s solar photovoltaic capacity reached a new milestone of 20 GW at the end of 2023, a 19% increase over 2022 levels. Throughout 2023, an additional 3.2 GW of solar power was connected to the grid, outpacing the 2.7 GW added in the previous year.