In France, parking areas containing solar cells are not an unusual sight. But now Emmanuel Macron's government is taking further steps to ensure that parking spaces become a guaranteed source of green energy.
Under a new law, owners of parking lots with between 80 and 800 spaces must install solar panels at their facilities within five years. Owners of larger parking lots have even higher requirements—they must act within three years and, in addition, at least 50 percent of the surface area must be covered.
This is what The Guardian writes in an article, and the purpose is described as supporting the national electricity grid, which has been greatly affected as a result of the war in Ukraine. Because of this, the French government has previously decided to use 45 billion euros to protect the country's households and industries from sky-high electricity prices.
France, particularly under Emmanuel Macron's leadership, has long been ambitious in its investments in sustainable energy. The government has for some time been running the national campaign, translated "Every gesture counts", which encourages individuals as well as companies to reduce energy consumption.
Through the new law, they estimate to get an additional 11 gigawatts of solar energy to the electricity grid.
Solar energy is growing rapidly in Sweden, but similar proposals have not yet been raised at the government level.
