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France's Latest Clean Energy Bill Has at Least One Caveat, Is Genius Otherwise

France has approved a new bill in its Senate that will help it get in line with the other EU nations in terms of renewable energy. As some may be aware, the country relies on nuclear power but lags in renewables, so a bill was made to help even out the balance. The idea is brilliant, although the money will have to be spent – as it involves installing solar panels across parking lots that have a certain number of spaces.
Rooftop solar panels installed on a home 43 photos
Photo: Oregon Department of Transportation/Creative Commons License
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To be specific, starting July 2023, parking lots in France that have between 80 and 400 parking spaces will have five years to comply with the new bill. The lots that have more than 400 spaces will have just three years to comply, while lots with less than 80 spaces will be exempted from the measure (initially - it might change later). Now, this is a great idea if you want to get more parking lots with solar panels, but there is at least one caveat.

The first problem that I can think of, because that is what I sometimes do for reasons that I cannot explain, is that there are several exemptions from the rule. For example, if the parking lot has more than half of its spaces covered in the shade from nearby trees, it will not require the installation of solar panels.

The same applies if there are architectural, heritage, and environmental constraints that would prohibit the installation of solar panels. If the parking lot is for trucks, there will be no need for compliance. The same goes if the "installation of panels cannot be met under economically acceptable conditions," which just covers too many scenarios in our book.

In other words, in a pessimistic view of the outcome of this in a couple of years, French administration workers may end up discovering several parking lots across the country that have a fantastic historical significance or that others would not be able to receive solar panels across the board because of the surrounding architecture might be ruined by those panels. Or if the company can prove that it will go under if it even tries to buy that many solar panels or if those parking lots end up being converted into lots for trucks.

A clever but simple trick helps solar panels exceed their maximum theoretical efficiency
Photo: Pixabay.com
At this point, you might be wondering why would the operator of a parking lot not agree to install solar panels across its property? Well, the reason is simple, as well as the second caveat on the list: there is no mention of the French government assisting businesses in any way to help with the financial burden of installing solar panels, which are not exactly affordable these days. Not all operators might get an exemption, so the plan might still work.

If you put two and two together, you might discover that companies who administer parking lots will either have to find a way to pay for solar panels on their property or to hire lawyers who must discover why their lot does not require the installation of solar panels according to the laws of 2026 or 2028, depending on the lot.

Initially, the French authorities wanted to make parking lots that had an area of at least 2,500 square meters (about 26,909 sq. Ft.) to comply with the rule but decided on the 80 spaces minimum instead. It is easier to just count the spaces, to be fair, so it does make sense, but there might be other loopholes here that might make the otherwise smart proposal almost useless.

France's Senate thought up the plan in an effort to generate up to 11 gigawatts of electricity from existing parking lots, and they accounted for those that are off highways and major routes, as Engadget noted. As a reference, the peak output would be the equivalent of 10 of the average French nuclear power plants without any risk of you-know-what.

A clever but simple trick helps solar panels exceed their maximum theoretical efficiency
Photo: Just Have a Think via Youtube
The idea works, as it was already demonstrated at the Pairi Daiza Zoo in Brugelette, Belgium, where almost 7,000 parking spaces have been covered by a photovoltaic park. The result provides up to 20 megawatts in total (20 MWp), which is almost as much as 20 nuclear power stations, and it is sustainable.

France also wants to build offshore wind farms to generate an extra 40 Gigawatts of power, while the photovoltaic parking lots would increase the country's sustainable energy production tenfold to over 100 Gigawatts.

With electric charging stations popping up in various places on the side of highways and national roads across Europe, some companies have implemented this concept in part for some of their charging spots, but France's proposal involves sending all the renewable energy into the country's grid instead of storing it in batteries and then deploying it to charge EVs.

Except for the massive cost of the project, it sounds like the best idea we have read about in quite a while. Before you begin to write an angry comment about the pollution generated by manufacturing those solar panels, the resulting clean energy obtained for many years would offset the negative effects linked to the manufacturing and shipping of those panels.
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Editor's note: For illustration purposes, the photo gallery has several images of solar panels installed in various places.

About the author: Sebastian Toma
Sebastian Toma profile photo

Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland.
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