The company Urba 521 is planning the installation of a photovoltaic park of 6,912 panels in the town of Bournoncle-Saint-Pierre, in Haute-Loire.
The Auvergne Rhône-Alpes Regional Environmental Authority Mission (MRAe) published a few weeks ago a deliberate opinion (1) on a project to install a ground-based photovoltaic park in the commune of Bournoncle-Saint-Pierre. If it is far from equaling the installation in Couteuges in 2012, it nevertheless seems a little more imposing than the one planned in Frugères-les-Mines, currently at the public inquiry stage. Overview of some of the many features found in the MRAe document.
Where does this project come from?
Supported by the company Urba 521, a subsidiary of the Urbasolar group (based in Montpellier and present in five European countries), this future photovoltaic park should be located on “a former quarry exploited for 25 years for the extraction of clay, backfilled at the end of its operation in 1997”. On its website, the Urbasolar company specifies that it “has more than 10 years of experience in the installation of ground-based power plants on industrial sites. These lands may have been the subject of industrial mining activity; a waste management activity; an exploitation of materials (for concrete, cement, pyrotechnics, etc.); wildlife and flora on the direct environment of the photovoltaic plant.
Where should the park be installed?
It would be located at a place called “Le Charlat”. The surface area of the potential settlement area would be 7.02 ha. Encompassing nine plots of land, it is bordered to the east by the D17 and a quarry, then to the west by the hill on which the Château de Laroche is located. In particular, on its western part, it has steep slopes and, throughout the rest of its surface area, a flatter surface. It is located approximately 800 m from the priory of Bournoncle.
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How big will it be?
In detail, the constructed part of this photovoltaic power plant project “extends over a total fenced area of 3.7 ha, including 1.78 ha of panels in projected area”. The site should also include a 19.5 m² room bringing together the transformation station and the delivery station, as well as a 60 m3 tank. An internal service road must also be created over a width of 3 m. The project envisages clearing involving the cutting of 800 m² of trees less than 30 years old.
For what electricity production?
On the power side, the 6,912 solar panels planned, inclined at 15° and positioned between 1.10 m and 2.99 m high from the ground, in rows separated by a minimum of 1.80 m, could deliver a power of 4.285 MWp (2 ) for an estimated production of 5.3 GWh per year. The company carrying the project sets the operating deadline at 30 years. For comparison, the park installed at the place called “Le Chausse”, in Salzuit by EDF Renewables in 2021, occupying almost 5 ha and equipped with 9,909 panels, was to develop a total installed power of 4.21 MWp and produce annually 5.1 GWh, equivalent to the average annual electricity consumption of around 1,050 homes.
Where are we?
The MRAe specifies: “The regional directorate for the environment, development and housing (Dreal) Auvergne Rhône-Alpes was contacted on October 8, 2024, by the competent authorities to issue authorization for the project, for advice to the title of environmental authority. […] The notice must be provided within the two month period. ” Contacted about this photovoltaic park project in Bournoncle-Saint-Pierre, the mayor of the town, Marie-Christine Egly, indicated that she had, at this stage of the file, ” no right to discuss the project”. On the other hand, she recalled that a public inquiry phase is obligatory before any creation of this park.
(1) The document is visible on the website www.mrae.developpement-durable.gouv.fr, in the section “Auvergne – Rhône-Alpes/Opinions given on projects/Opinions given on projects of the MRAe Auvergne Rhône-Alpes in 2024 “.
(2) The peak watt (Wc) is the unit measuring the power of panels under controlled conditions.
Pierre Hébrard
