AKUO and ECT, a common ambition for solar energy in Ile-de-France

In March 2019, AKUO – the leading independent French producer of distributed renewable energy – and ECT – land developer from the upcycling of excavated soil from real estate and construction sites – joined forces to create a joint subsidiary ACT -E. The ambition of the two companies through this subsidiary is to increase photovoltaic production in Ile-de-France.

The first operation carried out by this association is embodied by the “Les Gabots” solar power plant. This 17MW fixed ground plant located on the edge of the TGV tracks in the town of Annet-sur-Marne is one of the largest photovoltaic installations in the region and will help make the town of 3,300 inhabitants energy positive.

The “Gabots” solar power plant

At the end of November 2019, the first modules were installed, the plant started operation at the end of September 2020.

For this project AKUO opted for “GCL P6 / 72H low-carbon” cast-mono modules and in total 44,000 modules from the manufacturer GCL (represented in France by SYNAPSUN) were installed on the site.

The modules installed come from a supply chain where the manufacturing steps (from polysilicon to the module, including ingots, wafers and cells) have been the subject of a life cycle analysis validated by ADEME and whose carbon rating, certified by Certisolis, is among the lowest on the market.

As a large-scale project, the plant is expected to produce an estimated 18,500MWh of green energy per year. The solar panels are installed on backfills of inert waste thus giving a second life to this unused land.

A whole region associated with the financing of the project

For this large-scale project for the region, AKUO and ECT wanted to open up the capital to participatory investment. Thus, around 50% of equity financing needs were met by regional stakeholders (SEM SIPEnR, SDESM Energies, IDF Energies, the town hall of Annet-sur-Marne and the Communauté de Communes Plaines et Monts de France), proud to contribute to the development of the “Gabots” power station.

Citizens were not forgotten, and Akuo and ECT gave everyone the opportunity to participate in the refinancing of the project through AKUO’s citizen funding platform: AkuoCoop.

Since its creation, AkuoCoop has enabled citizens to finance 13 renewable energy plants for a cumulative amount of 7 million euros.

Connections:

To watch ECT’s video about the construction site: It’s here!