According to the latest solar energy dashboard published by France’s Ministry in charge of Energy (SDES), 3 GW of new solar capacity was connected in the first half of 2026, slightly above the 2.9 GW added during the same period in 2025.
Installations larger than 500 kW accounted for 28% of newly connected capacity but just 0.3% of new connections. By contrast, systems below 9 kW represented 78% of new installations but only 8% of newly added capacity.
As of June 30, 2026, France’s cumulative installed PV capacity stood at 34 GW, including 33 GW in mainland France and 1 GW in the overseas territories.
In the second quarter of 2026, gross solar power generation in mainland France reached 14.1 TWh, up 18% from 11.9 TWh a year earlier. Excluding self-consumption, solar generation totaled 13.7 TWh and covered 8.6% of mainland France’s electricity consumption during the period, up 1.6 percentage points from the second quarter of 2025.
35.9 GW of projects awaiting connection
The capacity of projects in the grid connection queue stood at 35.9 GW, down 1% from the fourth quarter of 2025. Of this total, 8.4 GW had already secured signed connection agreements.
The figures reflect connection requests submitted to grid operators and do not necessarily represent capacity that will ultimately be commissioned. The project attrition rate before completion remains significant and will depend, in particular, on the volumes supported by the French government in the coming years.
Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Occitanie and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes together accounted for 50% of France’s installed solar capacity as of June 30, 2026. The three regions also represented 45% of the new capacity commissioned during the first six months of the year.
Self-consumption reaches 62% of installations
In the second quarter of 2026, 62% of PV installations generated electricity that was either fully or partially self-consumed. These systems accounted for 19% of installed capacity, unchanged from the previous quarter.
Producers in mainland France self-consumed 1,047 GWh during the quarter, equivalent to 7% of gross solar generation. Systems dedicated entirely to self-consumption generated 515 GWh, or 49% of all self-consumed solar electricity.
Fully self-consuming systems accounted for 14% of mainland installations with full or partial self-consumption and 9% of the country’s total PV fleet.
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