Local decarbonizing energy: Veolia transforms its landfills into solar power plants, providing 300 MW of renewable energy in France.
Veolia has launched a large solar initiative on its restored landfill sites to achieve energy independence for its services in France. Over 40 installations with a 300 MW capacity of 100% renewable energy, enough for 130,000 people.
Veolia, a French multinational, is accelerating its efforts to promote local decarbonizing energy by installing solar panels on its restored landfills across France. The initiative is part of the company’s ongoing commitment to achieve energy self-sufficiency in the country.
Veolia aims to develop more than 40 solar projects on its selected non-hazardous restored landfills, with an overall installed capacity of 300 MW of renewable energy. Photovoltaic panels will cover an area of approximately 400 hectares, generating enough energy to power 130,000 households. The first of these plants will be operational by 2027.
The company is currently conducting feasibility assessments for solar power plants on its hazardous waste landfill sites and on sites managed on behalf of its industrial clients. In total, over 400 MW of renewable energy could be generated across France.
This solar energy program is being implemented in the context of a significant land shortage, which remains a major challenge for the expansion of solar projects in France. With the growing demand for clean and renewable energy, finding and securing suitable land for solar farms is becoming increasingly crucial.
Limited availability of sites, combined with a complex permitting process, creates significant barriers to the expansion of renewable energy. This highlights the importance of collaboration between public and private entities to ensure the rapid and effective deployment of solar energy in France.
“This initiative is fully in line with our strategy of developing local decarbonizing energy. For several months, we have been assessing all our sites to identify every suitable space to maximize energy production. From now on, our landfills, most of which already produce biogas or biomethane, will also generate photovoltaic energy,” explains Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of Veolia. “We aim to complete more than 40 projects within the next three to four years, but we could accelerate this process if administrative hurdles are removed and procedures are simplified. In light of the challenges of energy sovereignty and decarbonization, these delays need to be reduced by half.”
Source: Veolia.
