France Completes 9th Round Of Rooftop PV Bidding, Awarding 220MW

The French Ministry of Ecological Transformation has concluded the 9th round of rooftop photovoltaic bidding, part of the sixth round of the PPE2 framework. While the initial plan aimed for 400MW, only 54 projects totaling 220.3MW were awarded. Among them, 13 projects exceed 5MW, while the rest range between 500kW and 5MW. These installations will be deployed on buildings, agricultural greenhouses, sunshades, and agricultural photovoltaic sunshades.

Due to the declining cost of PV modules, the average winning bid price dropped to €98.2/MWh ($107/MWh), marking a 1.7% decrease from the previous round's €99.95/MWh. This is the lowest bid price since the third round of bidding.

Regional Distribution of Awarded Capacity

According to Finergreen data, 62% of the awarded projects are located in northern France. All regions secured projects, with Hauts-de-France leading at 55.2MW, followed by Centre-Val de Loire (30.9MW) and Nouvelle-Aquitaine (27.7MW).

Top Bidders & Future Outlook

Among the winning companies, Urbasolar ranked first with 40.9MW, followed by UNITe (38.8MW) and GLP (20.9MW).

The 10th round of rooftop PV bidding will again offer 400MW, with a submission deadline of March 28, 2025. However, the French Ministry of Industry and Energy recently announced incentive reductions for sub-500kW rooftop PV projects, effective February 1, 2025, which could impact future investment returns.