A law to speed up the production of renewable energies
French law No. 2023-175 relating to the acceleration of renewable energy production (APER law) was adopted in March 2023. It aims to oversee agrivoltaics for reconciling agricultural and energy production, while maintaining arable land and “by ensuring that there are no negative effects on land and agricultural prices.”
An official definition of agrivoltaics since 2023
First of all, this regulatory framework allows agrivoltaics to be officially defined. Article L. 314-36 of the Energy Code, amended by the APER law, defines an agrivoltaic installation as an electricity production device using solar energy and whose modules are located on an agricultural plot. This installation must contribute to the sustainable maintenance, development or improvement of the agricultural production.
It must also provide at least one of the following services:
· The improvement of agronomic potential and impact,
· Adaptation to climate change,
· Protection against hazards,
· Improving animal welfare.
In other words: an installation that significantly affects one of these services, or that affects only two of these services, cannot be qualified as agrivoltaics.
A strengthened regulatory framework in 2024
Provided for by the APER law, the decree published in April 2024 sets a framework for the development of agrivoltaics. Rules have also been developed to prevent or punish regulatory breaches.
The main requirements of the decree to frame agrivoltaics are:
· Soil coverage rate by solar panels limited to 40%. The only exceptions: small experimental projects may exceed this 40% coverage rate, with the agreement of the Departmental Commission for the Preservation of Natural and Forest Areas (CDPENAF).
· Loss less than 10% of exploitable agricultural area,
· Agricultural yields Means maintained at 90% or more in relation to local references or to the control area,
· Revenues Average farm size maintained or improved (without taking into account income from agrivoltaic activity).
The Decree of April 2024 is the result of work carried out jointly by the administration, unions including France Agrivoltaisme, project developers such as the company TSE, as well as agricultural professional organizations. Together, they have defined rules capable of protecting agriculture, in order to prioritize food production, while supporting the production of renewable energy under the Aper law.
Protect agrivoltaics by controlling installations
The decree of July 5, 2024 complements this decree by further specifying the procedures for monitoring and controlling installations, especially in livestock farming. For example, in ruminant farming, yield objectives are controlled using two indicators: the production of fodder biomass and the loading rate.
Agrivoltaic projects will be evaluated from the design of the installations to the preservation of agricultural yields. The evaluation grid must in fact ensure that only projects that provide a real service to agriculture are not selected.
Several control phases are planned:
· An initial check before the commissioning of the agrivoltaic installation,
· A follow-up check during the 6thyear of operation,
· Then checks every 3 years, or even every 5 years for “proven” technologies.
When the compatibility between a type of crop, a type of soil and a technology is demonstrated, the deployment of this “proven” technology will be facilitated. The checks will be more frequent (5 years) and will not require a control area for comparison. These technologies, considered proven, will be defined by ministerial decree on the basis of information provided by ADEME (Environment and Energy Management Agency).
Attention: in case of non-compliance, the termination of power purchase contracts or the dismantling of the installation can be applied.
The exception of uncultivated land
The framework has now been established: agricultural land can only receive so-called “agrivoltaic” projects, as defined by article 314-36 of Law No. 2023-175 relating to Aper.
On the other hand, land deemed uncultivated or unused for more than 10 years can accommodate ground based photovoltaic panel projects, without coactivity. These projects are therefore not defined as “agrivoltaics”.
These unproductive plots will be identified and listed by the Chambers of Agriculture in 2025. They will be the exception to agrivoltaics, which must continue to be the norm.
Limiting the risks of speculation on agricultural land
Could an agricultural plot be worth more thanks to energy production rather than to its agricultural use? This question raises concerns: land speculation, land retention and obstacles to its transmission, or even the abandonment of crops in favor of higher incomes from photovoltaic energy.
To avoid these situations, the legislation provides for strict rules for agrivoltaic project developers:
· Do not break the rural lease,
· Provide guarantees for the maintenance of agricultural activity,
· Integrate the take-back and transfer process, with projects planned for 30 to 40 years,
· Sharing value between owner and operator. The association of the operator with the income from the project is in fact a condition of eligibility for tenders from the CRE (Commission de Régulation de l'Énergie).
An Afnor label for the agrivoltaics sector
In order to better manage projects, the France Agrivoltaism* network implemented a certification by Afnor at the end of 2021. This label, called “Class A agrivoltaics project on crops”, values projects that improve the sustainability of plots and farms.
To conclude...
The regulatory framework established since 2023 anchors agrivoltaics in an approach of sustainable agriculture and energy transition. Indeed, thanks to its precise definition and its control methods, agrivoltaics guarantees the food vocation of arable land in order to preserve France's food sovereignty. And this, by promoting the development of renewable energies. Still fairly recent, agrivoltaic systems will undoubtedly benefit from technological advances to further strengthen the balance between agricultural and energy production. To be continued!
* The France Agrivoltaics network brings together Chambers of Agriculture and companies in the sector, such as TSE. Mathieu Debonnet, President of TSE, was also elected Vice President for members of the technological solutions sector dedicated to agrivoltaics.
