France, Photovoltaic technology status and prospects - Contribution to the Annual report 2005

France
Photovoltaic technology status and prospects
André Claverie and Fabrice Juquois
French Agency for Environment and Energy Management (ADEME),
Renewable Energies Department, Sophia Antipolis Centre

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General Framework

Fig.2 - Grid-connected PV system, 22 kW roof of waste treatment centre –Martinique Island (photo - courtesy Apex BP Solar).

The year 2005 was marked by a few important events which were conducive to the exploitation of renewable energy sources. The French Parliament has passed the Finance Act setting the guidelines for the energy policy while the government was implementing fresh fiscal and financial measures:

The Energy Framework Policy Law passed last 13 July 2005 emphasizes energy management coupled with the development of renewable energies; while priority was given to the use of bio-resources and the recourse to solar thermal energy. Solar photovoltaic energy (PV) comes under the same research package of the law on par with hydrogen and carbon dioxide sequestration;
Fiscal measures are aiming at favouring the use by private individuals of materials for heat and electricity generation based on renewable energy sources. The tax credit on income previously set at 40 % for the year 2005 will rise to 50 % in 2006;
The announcement of a 50 % increase in the buy back rate for PV-generated electricity for the private individuals and a 100 % rise for enterprises and local communities, a measure that will come into force as of 31 March 2006.

In parallel with these measures, the government has overhauled its policy for research funding and created two new means agencies. The Ministry in charge of research has created the National Research Agency (ANR) (www.agence-national-recherche.fr) while the Ministry for Industry has set up the Industrial Innovation Agency (AII, www.aii.fr). Both agencies have put photovoltaics high on their agendas as priority action themes. And that's how in 2005, the ANR has funded a new photovoltaic research programme. This initiative was developed in conjunction with ADEME and supported by its experts committee. ADEME had been until to date, the sole national agency for photovoltaic R&D funding. Concerning the Industrial Innovation Agency future photovoltaic projects will have an industrial aspect while the ANR will be backing basic and applied research projects. In France, the main players acting in the photovoltaic industry are developing, manufacturing, assembling and installing the systems. These players act in conjunction with public research teams for research and technological development projects (RTD) funded either by ADEME, or by the ANR, or OSEO anvar Agency for the innovating SMEs or by AII in future.

Activities deployed by the main industrial players are described under Section “Industrial context” and those relating to public laboratories developed under Section “RTD” below. Public research organizations such as CNRS (National Research Organization) and the CEA (Atomic Energy Commissariat) are also involved in research and study works, usually, in cooperation with the industry. CEA and CNRS have decided to join forces for the implementation of the new National Institute for Solar Energy (INES). There are ongoing prefiguration initiatives. And INES will have personnel from both CEA and CNRS.
The electricity utility (EDF) also has a programme aimed at development and promotion of photovoltaic systems and has been granted subsidies from ANR and ADEME for research on materials and developing International Standards.

In order to implement its policy of market incentives, ADEME is sharing with the regional councils the subsidies designed for investment, and for some operations the Agency is acting in cooperation with the European Commission structural funds. ADEME and the regional councils have reviewed their funding policy and tried to adjust to the Finance Act that came into force in 2005. As some regional councils are very active, this allows some French regions to be better equipped with photovoltaic systems (Rhône-Alpes, Languedoc-Roussillon, etc.) than others.
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National Programme

ADEME, the French Agency for Environment and Energy Management (www.ademe.fr) is the public establishment that the French government has put in charge of implementing the national policy for sustainable development in the following four intervention fields: energy management, waste management, soils conservation and air quality. The energy management aspects include energy efficiency as well as the use of renewable energy sources, among which solar photovoltaics.

The national photovoltaic programme is structured around three actions axes:

Research and technological development funded since February 2005 by two agencies: ADEME (the historic backer) and the new ANR;
Incentives for opening the market provided by ADEME in conjunction with the regional councils and the EC;
Training activities, information dissemination and cooperation aspects run by ADEME.

The first two R&D activities and markets axes are described in the sections below. The third axis covers several activities. For instance, at the Sophia Antipolis centre, ADEME is running three to four annual training sessions meant for installers and those managing PV systems projects. ADEME is also contributing to the training of young engineers through PhD grants. Novice engineers participate in applied research projects in the public or industrial research laboratories during their three-year PhD thesis.

In parallel, ADEME is involved in several types of cooperation projects together with European and international partners. ADEME is a partner in several projects backed by the European Commission: PV-ERA-NET (www.pv-era.net) and PV-Policy-Group (www.pvpolicy.org).
The Agency also participates in the works carried out by the European Photovoltaic Technology Platform (www.eupvplatform.org). ADEME is also active in the Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme of the International Energy Agency (IEA), with a direct participation or via subcontracted participation through working groups (tasks) n° 1, 2, 9, 10 and, in preparation during 2005, it will join the future working group n° 11. Concerning International Standards, ADEME is contributing with its partners to the works carried out by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC/CEI, Technical committee 82, www.iec.ch). ADEME is also involved in several other international projects with photovoltaics as just one aspect (CRESMED, SYNERGY+, RESTMAC projects, etc.)

ADEME intervenes under bilateral partnerships and provides support to some French-speaking African countries for some off-grid electrification projects.

ADEME is also a sponsor of events of national or international impact. For example, the building industry Bâtimat exhibition held in Paris in November 2005. Renewable energies and more particularly photovoltaics were subject of much attention and information requests. ADEME is funding a network of energy information centres allowing putting across its messages to private individuals. At the national level, ADEME has launched an awareness campaign on energy saving and other related topics with the slogan “Let's act fast, it's heating up.”
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Research and Development

In 2005, the creation of the National Research Agency (ANR) and the launch of a PV R&D programme went down well with the French photovoltaics teams. The latter observed that since about two years, ADEME budgets could not meet their ambitions, namely for basic and applied research.

ANR has selected ten projects with a duration ranging from two to three years among which, from the crystalline silicon sector (PHARE and TWIN projects); the thin film sector (CISEL and ATOS projects); the organic materials and the new concepts (NANORGYSOL and PRE-THECES projects). Additional R&D projects relate to the studies on the photovoltaic systems and components (QUALIVAL-ENR, PVPERFORMANCE, MICROSCOPE and MULTISOL projects).

ADEME itself has namely supported two industrial development projects: the PHOTOSIL project which is targeting the construction of one pilot for manufacturing photovoltaic grade feedstock silicon through the metallurgic route (three-year project) and, the RÉDUCOP project (lasting four years) that is aiming at reducing manufacturing costs of photovoltaic cells and modules. Both projects were launched by manufacturers in cooperation with the public laboratories.

Development of PV construction materials comes under a fresh programme called PREBAT and run jointly by the ANR and ADEME.

Under the European EUREKA cooperation programme, one pilot project for manufacturing PV silicon ribbons received the backing of OSEO anvar, the agency in charge of innovation funding in the SMEs. The photovoltaic research and technological development public budget thus grew from 4 MEUR in 2004 (ADEME budget) to 12 MEUR in 2005 (ADEME and ANR budgets).

The scientific community meets once a year in Sophia Antipolis. On the 14, 15 and 16 November 2005, 130 participants gained first hand knowledge of the PV RTD works on the occasion of the seminar hosted by ADEME, in partnership with the CNRS and the CEA.

Summaries of the communications can be accessed on following website www.pv.ademe.cea.cnrs.free.fr. The printed proceedings of the previous 2004 seminar (273 pages) are available upon request (CD-ROMs are no longer available).

Fig. 1 - Grid-connected PV system, 32 kW - Réunion Island (photo -courtesy Apex BP Solar).

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Implementation

The Finance Act that came into force in 2005 has implemented a new financial aid system designed for private individuals installing a photovoltaic system on the roof of their houses. This system replaces the subsidies granted by ADEME. Conversely, in the case of projects launched by public and private operators, ADEME and the regional councils have continued granting subsidies that cover part of the total investment costs (materials and work force).

And thus, for the private individuals subjected to income taxation, the fiscal measure consists of reimbursement covering up to 40 % of the cost of equipment (installation costs are not taken into consideration). Financially speaking, this measure is less profitable than the subsidies granted in 2004 for this type of users. And some regional councils have therefore adopted financial measures to partly compensate for the difference (subsidized feed-in tariff or direct subsidy). It should be noted that in 2006, the tax credit rate on the income will be increased from 40 % to 50 %.

For the industry and public operators that are not subjected to taxation, the subsidy amount is granted on a case-by-case basis as part of calls for projects. In this case, ADEME is insisting on the quality of the architectural integration of the PV modules over the buildings when it is a new building and, requires that a strong energy management policy be implemented. In 2005, the overall power of the systems installed in France was estimated at 6 MW of which 5 MW connected to the grid, a 15 % increase as compared to the previous year.

The projects developed with the European Commission backing, and co-funded by ADEME, were completed in 2005. The PV-STARLET project, in partnership with the Hespul association and the Imerys-Toiture firm, has allowed the installation of 420 kW of photovoltaic systems based on solar tiles on approximately 200 houses. The UNIVERSOL project, coordinated in France by Hespul, ended with the installation of 290 kW on 12 educational buildings.

Feed-in tariffs applied for electricity from solar source for the year 2005 were set at 0,14 EUR per kWh in mainland France and 0,28 EUR per kWh in Corsica and the French overseas departments (DOM). On 14 November 2005, and this is important news, the Prime Minister announced that the feed-in tariffs will be raised to 0,225 EUR per kWh for the PV systems installed on private premises (also benefiting from the tax credit) and 0,30 EUR per kWh for the PV systems installed on industrial or public buildings. The measure should be effective as of 31 March 2006. The rate applied for the French overseas departments remains unchanged for the time being.
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Industry Status

The French photovoltaic industry relies on a few motivated players acting since the early 1980s. Photowatt (materials, multicrystalline silicon cells/modules and systems), Apex BPSolar (PV components and systems), Tenesol (previously called Total Energie, PV components and systems) and Free Energy Europe (amorphous silicon modules). Some new firms have recently become involved in this industry: Emix (multicrystalline silicon ingots), Invensil/Ferroatlantica (feedstock Si material), Apollon Solar (c-Si process), Solar Force (silicon ribbon) alongside industrialists manufacturing equipment ECM, Vésuvius, Semco, etc., storage batteries of which SAFT or construction components manufacturers: Imerys-Toiture, Lafarge Couverture, Sunland21, Kawneer, etc.

Production of photovoltaic cells and modules by the Photowatt International firm was 33 MW in 2005 and has reached full production capacity. In order to meet demand, the firm is manufacturing, in addition to the multicrystalline silicon cells, monocrystalline silicon cells by purchasing monocrystalline ingots from outside sources. Photowatt is contemplating an increase in production capacity to reach 100 MW per year.
The pilot company for the RTD project called RÉDUCOP dedicated to the reduction of production costs in cooperation with research teams from CEA and CNRS (with ADEME backing).
The Emix Company has launched the production of multicrystalline silicon ingots using the cold crucible continuous electromagnetic casting process. Products from this new production tool have passed the validation tests among the firm's customers. Emix is running the new RTD project called TWIN (supported by ANR).
The Tenesol firm (a joint-venture between the Total Group and EDF), specialised in photovoltaic systems, has launched manufacturing of photovoltaic modules based on crystalline silicon (15 MW capacity per year) in April 2005, in Toulouse.
Invensil/Ferroatlantica and Apollon Solar firms have launched the construction of one pilot for manufacturing photovoltaic grade silicon feedstock material (200 tonnes capacity per year). This project, called PHOTOSIL, in which CEA/LITEN Laboratory cooperates, receives funding from ADEME and the local communities. The pilot should be operational in 2006. The project is located in Bourget-du-Lac, as part of the future INES (National Institute for Solar Energy).

Regarding the technology sector based on thin film hydrogenated amorphous silicon on glass substrate, the industrial players Free Energy Europe and Solems (small power applications) are continuing their production. However, they have not announced new developments in 2005.
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Market Development

Operational photovoltaic capacity in France 1 at the end of 2005, was estimated at 30 MW. This accounts for the annual production of 30 GWh in electrical energy. Approximately 6 MW were installed in 2005. Acquisitions of PV systems connected to the grid by private individuals were down in continental France. This is attributable to the financial terms that have become less attractive than they were in 2004, when there were still direct subsidies from ADEME in place; as the latter were replaced in 2005 by a tax credit at the rate of 40 %. This decrease has been compensated by the growth of the number of installations in the French overseas departments (DOM), which has allowed an overall volume of grid-connected installations equal to the one achieved in 2004, i.e. approximately 5 MW. The installed power of the stand-alone systems still remains stable, with approximately 1 MW. And it is now more a matter of replacing the end-of-life installations and reinforcing the existing installations than the installation of new equipment.
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Conclusions and Outlook

2005 was marked by important initiatives from the government that strengthened photovoltaic electricity within a legal and regulatory framework. Here it is worth mentioning the Energy Framework Policy which strengthens energy management and the applications of renewable energy sources, the new PV R&D programme of the National Research Agency (ANR) that gives a new impetus to photovoltaic research and finally, the announcement in late 2005, of the increase in the PV electricity feed-in tariffs as well as a rise in the tax credit rate.

The research teams were the first beneficiaries of the new measures. The public intervention budget for PV RTD grew three-fold in 2005.

ADEME and the ANR, which are now the two national agencies for research funding, will continue to support selected PV RTD projects launched as part of consortia of industrial and public partnerships.

The installation volume of photovoltaic roofs at the private individuals', however, has not really benefited from the tax credit scheme (40 % rate) implemented in 2005. The overall power of the PV systems installed in 2005 is 15 % higher than the one of 2004, approximately 6 MW.

In late 2005, the French government announced the increase in the feed-in tariffs for electricity generated by PV up to 0,225 EUR per kWh in the case of the PV systems installed at private individuals'. This measure supplements the decision to raise the tax credit up to the 50 % level. In the case of the PV systems installed over industrial or communities buildings, the feed-in tariff has been set at 0,30 EUR per kWh. This measure will be effective as of 31 March 2006. This is an important step in the right direction taken by the government by recognising the potential of this industrial business sector.

In exchange, ADEME will end the grants in continental France while the regional councils may maintain their subsidies. Industrialists are expecting the implementation of these new measures to reactivate the commercial activity in France.
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Footnote

France means mainland France, Corsica and the overseas departments: Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion and Guyane.