Network connection schemes for renewable energy in france: a spatial analysis

Auteurs

Cyril Martin de Lagarde

Astract

Regional network connection schemes for renewable energy sources (RES) have been set in France in order to avoid “large” (i.e. > 100 kW) RES producers to pay deep-cost connection charges, that were seen as a brake on the development of renewable energy, and to give a locational price signal to RES projects developers. Using a unique database of connection applications by wind producers to the main French DSO’s (Enedis) network, we develop a spatial panel model that captures the effect of this innovative regulation as well as spatial dependences of the variables. Thus, we show that the schemes have managed to redirect connection requests towards less constrained regions without altering the global level of connections, and that spatial substitution occurred between regions. On average, an increase of the network charge of e/kW in a region reduces quarterly connection requests by 300 kW in the region while increasing them by 138 kW in the neighbouring ones. Finally, we show that the diffusion of wind energy exhibits an “epidemic” effect, i.e. there is a positive impact of the number of past installations on the number of connection requests.