French farmers and Solar energy
Bright winter sun dissolves a blanket of snow on barn roofs to reveal a bold new sideline for Jean-Luc Westphal: besides producing eggs and grains, he is to generate solar power for thousands of homes.
Economic crisis has cast doubt on funding hopes for many big renewable
energy projects, but the giant panels built into roofs on this sloping
farm at the foot of the Vosges hills in eastern France are attracting
attention from farmers to financiers.
Westphal is one of a small but growing band of farmers in the European
Union’s biggest agricultural producer who are taking up new incentives
for solar power to supplement farm incomes as well as help France meet
renewable energy targets.
