Since 2017, EDF Renewables owns a subsidiary specialising in the operation and maintenance of offshore wind farms, the German firm Offshore WindSolutions GmbH (OWS). OWS operates and maintains the BARD Offshore 1 wind farm (400MW) located 95km off the German coast in the North Sea.
EDF Renewables owns several European maintenance centres: in Belgium, Greece,United Kingdom, Germany and France. These operation-maintenance units are designed to place technical teams as close to wind or solar farms as possible to ensure faster response times and thus operational performance.
EDF ENR is an integrated player in decentralised solar power production, carrying out design, development, construction, operation, and maintenance of rooftop and car park canopy installations. A wholly-owned subsidiary of the Group, it markets solar power offers for domestic customers, professionals, and local authorities in metropolitan France and overseas departments and territories. With over35,000 facilities completed, EDF ENR now occupies a leading position. On the domestic market, it carries out some 30% of all self-consumption installations inFrance. On the professional market, the offering features in the “EDF Solutions Energétiques” catalogue, under the responsibility of business market sales teams.
In addition, EDF Renewables Technologies, a wholly-owned subsidiary of EDF Renewables, is present in the upstream segment. It owns 100% of EDF ENRPWT (Photowatt brand) which designs and manufactures photovoltaic modules using crystalline silicon technology with various applications ranging from residential equipment to land-based solar farms. Since late 2018, Photowatt has been rolling out a new industrial model focusing on low-carbon production of high-technology silicon wafers and ingots. Alongside this joint project, Photowatt focuses on its R&D activities, renamed Photowatt Lab, in conjunction with the EDF group’s R&D Department and solar energy research centres such as INES or the PhotovoltaicInstitute of Ile-de-France region with a view to fostering the emergence of new technology in the field of photovoltaic cells and modules and testing it in pre-industrial conditions.
EDF Renewables is engaged in a growth strategy in the USA on the decentralised energy market. A number of acquisitions have fuelled growth since 2016. Following the acquisition in 2016 of Global Ressources Options, Inc. (groSolar), which specialises in the installation and sale of photovoltaic plants for local authorities, service companies and industrial players, in 2018, EDF Renewables North America entered into a strategic partnership with EnterSolar, a leading supplier of solutions for the decentralised generation of solar energy for commercial and industrial (C&I) customers. This partnership concerns the EDF Renewables equity investment in Enter Solar to the tune of 50%. It will allow both companies to offer C&I customers the most comprehensive range of solutions for “behind the counter” decentralised electricity generation and to capitalise on the sharp growth in demand for decentralised generation solutions from the C&I sector.
In 2019, EDF Renewables North America acquired PowerFlex Systems with the aim of speeding up large-scale deployment of infrastructures for electric vehicles in theUSA. Based in Los Altos, California, PowerFlex System is a pioneering firm in the field of charging technology. This acquisition has allowed the creation of a unique decentralised energy ecosystem combining smart charging solutions for electric vehicles and power charging for buildings, together with solar power production and storage facilities.
In 2018, EDF Renewables together with Asia Clean Capital (ACC), one of the main developers in China of rooftop photovoltaic installations for local businesses and multinationals, launched a joint venture aimed at building and operating a portfolio of decentralised solar energy projects on rooftops. The joint venture shall leverage the local reputation of ACC as a key decentralised solar player in the country and the international expertise of EDF Renewables in decentralised solar power and in self-consumption solutions for industrial players. In 2019, EDF Renewables acquired a majority stake in an asset portfolio comprising 77MWp of rooftop solar power installations with Asia Clean Capital.
In 2018, the Group launched an Electricity Storage Plan which provides for the installation of 10GW new storage facilities for electricity systems by 2035, to whichEDF Renewables contributes.
In a context marked by the strong growth of renewable energy generation and by the closure of large-scale electrical facilities, battery storage technology, combined with a smart control system, helps smooth out the generation of electricity of the national grid. In this context, through its subsidiaries, EDF Renewables develops innovative storage systems in the US, the United Kingdom, Germany and France.
In 2015, for instance, EDF Renewables North America commissioned an innovative storage system: The McHenry facility provides nearly 20MW of capacity (40MW of dynamic capacity) and helps monitor an energy reserve to stabilise the frequency of the electricity grid at a local level.
In 2018, EDF Renewables commissioned the battery storage system with a capacity of 49MW located in the West Burton B plant in Nottinghamshire in the UK. This facility is the most important project of the new frequency control system to be rolled out across the entire UK. The objective is to improve electricity grid stability and quickly respond to grid frequency fluctuations.
In 2018, EDF Renewables also signed two twenty-year power purchase agreement sin the US relating to the construction of the Big Beau Solar+Storage solar project, inCalifornia (see section “Solar photovoltaic power North America”), and connected to the battery storage system of 40MW (160MWh).
In 2019, EDF Renewables bought out UK startup Pivot Power, specialising in battery electricity storage and charging infrastructures for electric vehicles. The EDF group is already the UK’s leading producer of low-carbon electricity; this acquisition will now enable it to become one of the country’s leading battery storage installers, too.
Lastly, the Noor Midelt I solar power project in Morocco is a major project for the storage industry (see section 1.4.1.3.3.2 “Solar power”).
In 2020, EDF Renewables became a partner of Ecosun Innovations, taking a 29%stake in its share capital(1). This French startup, located in Alsace, develops innovative “microgrid” solutions to provide electricity in remote areas. In particular, Ecosun Innovations markets a range of solar plants in mobile containers, equipped with storage batteries.
In French Guiana, EDF Renewables also commissioned the Toucan II solar power plant (5MW), equipped with a smart battery storage system.
In 2020, EDF Renewables announced the signature of a 22-year Power PurchaseAgreement (PPA) with NV Energy for a project comprising 200MWac of solar power along with a 180MW 4-hour battery storage system(2). The ChuckwallaSolar+Storage project should be commissioned by the end of 2023 and supply enough clean electricity each year for 45,000 average households in Nevada.
EDF Renewables signed a storage contract with CleanPowerSF. The 100MWac Maverick 6 solar project in California will now be connected to a 50MW, 4-hour battery storage system. The project should be commissioned by the end of 2021.
In 2020, EDF Renewables launched an innovative storage offering for industrial customers. In partnership with Malteurop, a world leader in malt production, EDFRenewables commissioned two new battery storage systems, located on the Rostockand Heidenau sites.
(1) See EDF Renewables’ press release dated 28 September 2020 “The EDF group invests in the startup EcoSun Innovations and strengthens its microgrid offer”.
(2) See EDF Renewables’ press release dated 29 July 2020 “EDF Renewables signs a contract for 200MW solar + storage 180MW/4hr project in Nevada”.
