The solar park project, in progress in the south of Indre, has two characteristics: it extends over five municipalities – Le Pêchereau, Chavin, Mosnay, Malicornay and Maillet – and involves thirteen farmers as part of a scheme agrivoltaic. Supported since 2021 by the company Valeco, which manages around thirty power plants across France, the file is based above all on a collective approach, involving different partners.
The project provides a total power of 140 MWp to power 35,000 homes
“This operation was able to develop thanks to word of mouth”underlined Wednesday at the town hall of Pêchereau, Kevin Vérot, solar manager of the company in the Centre-Val de Loire region, on the occasion of the signing of a shareholding pact with the municipalities concerned.
Over the course of a study covering an area of 325 ha, Valeco conducted in-depth consultation with local elected officials, land owners and farmers, taking into account the needs and recommendations of the area. Thanks to this listening and the systematic analysis of the areas at stake, the area retained was reduced to 214 fenced ha. Less than a third (28%) of this space will be equipped with panels configured to encourage present and future agricultural activities, over a period of forty years. The project provides a total power of 140 MWp to power 35,000 homes.
The inclination of the 2 m² panels, distributed in clusters, will be between 3.57 m to 2.30 m, and maintenance of the site will be carried out by horses, cattle, sheep and mowing. “We are experimenting with this process on a five-hectare park located south of Poitiers. specified Kévin Vérot. This is something consistent, we will not sell electricity to EDF, but we will benefit from collective self-consumption. »
The fruit of in-depth studies
Although this project, costing 140 million euros, will only come to fruition in 2030, the building permit has just been submitted, to the great satisfaction of elected officials. “Studies taking into account the impact on the fauna, flora, landscape, and even the risks of dazzling for pilots at the Bourdine aerodrome have been carried out, underlined Jean-Pierre Nandillon, the mayor of Pêchereau. This project, entitled Vallée de la Creuse, will enable the production of green energy and contribute to the energy mix of our country. »
Kévin Vénot, who operates on familiar ground since the company Valeco commissioned the La Châtre-l'Anglin photovoltaic power plant a few months ago, described this file as exemplary, “with partners fully committed to the energy transition of their territory, which demonstrates that it is possible to act collectively to increase the share of renewable energies in French energy production while favoring and maintaining agricultural production already in place, thanks to tailor-made solutions adapted to the needs of farmers and local authorities. »
