According to the latest report, this week, the French Senate passed new legislation that requires all parking lots with at least 80 parking spaces to be equipped with solar panels, regardless of existing ones.
The new rules are part of a massive plan to invest in renewable energy in France, which aims to increase the country’s solar power capacity by 10 times and double the output of onshore wind farms.
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According to the report, from July 1, 2023, small car parks with 80 to 400 parking spaces will have five years to meet the new rules, and car parks with more than 400 parking spaces will need to meet the new rules within three years, and have at least half of the car park area is covered with solar panels.
Specifically targeting large car parks around commercial centers and train stations, the plan could generate up to 11GW of electricity, the equivalent of 10 nuclear reactors, powering millions of homes.
Under an amendment to the bill, France has introduced rules that exclude parking lots for trucks carrying heavy goods or those in historic, protected areas.
Moreover, the French national railway service company SNCF also plans to install about 190,000 square meters of solar panels at 156 stations across the country by 2025 and 1.1 million square meters by 2030, with the ultimate goal of reducing energy consumption by 25%.
