CARBON solar gigafactory obtains Major National Interest Project status in France

A French government decree has granted a gigafactory being built by solar company CARBON the status of Major National Interest Project.

The solar manufacturer’s project is among the first to benefit from this new status, dedicated to strategic industrial initiatives that “promote ecological transition and strengthen France’s independence”.

Major National Interest Projects are those which, by the nature of their productions, reduce France’s dependence in strategic sectors or contribute to the ecological transition and hold national interest due to their significance in terms of investment and job creation.

This new status, provided for by the so-called ‘Green Industry’ law, allows the projects to benefit from various types of exemptions and to be prioritized for administrative procedures to facilitate and accelerate their establishment on French territory.

The granting of this status confirms the Frech government’s recognition of the highly strategic nature of the project led by CARBON.

In the field of the photovoltaic industry, it is the most significant European project, with an investment of 1.7 billion euros.

The gigafactory, based in Fos-sur-Mer at the Grand Port Maritime de Marseille, will be the largest in Europe. CARBON said it will have a yearly production capacity of 5GWp and the vertical integration of the core steps of the industrial value chain (ingots, wafers, cells, modules).

“It will drastically reduce our dependence on imports of photovoltaic panels produced outside Europe,” the company added in a statement.

CARBON said the goal of the project is to “develop a complete industrial ecosystem in Europe, from upstream to downstream”.

The gigafactory will produce more than 10 million PV panels per year and create 3000 direct and at least 9000 indirect both regionally and nationally.

Construction is due to start in mid-2025, with commissioning planned by the end of 2026.