Germany’s BayWa r.e. and Britain’s Octopus Energy will supply solar power to French rail operator SNCF Voyageurs under 2 newly signed corporate power purchase agreements (CPPAs). It will enable SNCF to power its mobility solutions as the company targets to decarbonize its operations.  

The Greenberry and Fontenet 3 solar power plants, developed and built by BayWa r.e. and acquired through Octopus Energy’s Sky fund (ORI SCSp), are situated on former military bases in Centre-Val de Loire and Nouvelle-Aquitaine.  

Together, the projects are expected to generate over 100 GWh of green electricity annually under the agreements signed with SNCF subsidiary SNCF Énergie. 

“As one of the largest consumers of electricity in France, we aim to cover 40 to 50% of our trains’ electricity needs with renewable energy by 2030, including 20% via CPPAs. The Fontenet 3 and Greenberry agreements represent a decisive step in our commitment to the energy transition,” said SNCF Énergie Director General, Richard Fécamp.  

Over the 25-year term of the CPPAs, the plants are projected to produce 2.5 TWh of renewable electricity – enough to power the equivalent of 15,500 Paris–Rennes TGV trains annually. For the project partners BayWa and Octopus, these contracts are the 1st of their kind to be signed in France. 

For SNCF, these agreements follow 4 CPPAs it signed with French renewable energy company Neoen in July this year for the delivery of 137 GWh/year from 111 MW solar capacity, starting from January 1, 2026, for 25 years. 

In July 2023, SNCF subsidiary SNCF Renouvelables announced a 1 GW solar power target for 2030 on vacant group land and rooftop solar (see SNCF Plans Solar Project Developments in France).