France swings behind PV as 541MW of projects get go-ahead

France has approved more than 200 large solar projects totalling 541MW as part of a tender launched last year, with the government of newly-elected Prime Minister Francois Hollande strongly signalling its intention to take a more favourable view of PV.

Former Prime Minister Nicolas Sarkozy was widely viewed as being in bed with France’s powerful nuclear industry, although in the run-up to May’s election he took pains to show that he too supported PV – including convincing state-owned EDF to acquire bankrupt French module maker Photowatt.

France connected 1.5GW of PV capacity to the grid last year, making it the world’s fifth-largest market, according to the European Photovoltaics Industry Association (EPIA).

However, the Sarkozy government had taken dramatic steps to ensure the market would shrink in 2012, including putting…

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