Cost+ Community Photovoltaic Shade Structures ROI < 7 years

Corrèze Departmental Council Building — Tulle (19)

Producing local energy to serve public buildings

Department of Corrèze

Corrèze Departmental Council Building — Tulle (19)

-25 %

electricity purchased / year

346 MWh produced locally — equivalent to 88 households/year

-27 %

carbon emissions

34.6 tCO₂/year avoided — equivalent to 20 round trips between Paris and New York

Context

The parking lot at the Corrèze Departmental Council building in Tulle represented an underutilized area. The installation of photovoltaic canopies transformed it into a productive asset: local renewable energy, protection for parked vehicles, and a contribution to the region's energy transition goals.

The 307 kWp solar power plant, covering 1,325 m², operates primarily on a self-consumption basis (86%) with the surplus sold back to the grid (14%). The project received state aid to reduce the remaining costs for the Department.

Situation before · after

Before work

Electricity consumption 1,263 MWh/year

Carbon footprint 127 tCO₂/year

Solar production: None

Results observed

Electricity consumption 346 MWh/year (−25%)

Carbon footprint -34.6 tCO₂/year

Self-consumption 86 % ✓

Missions completed

Design and sizing of the power plant

Solar feasibility study, sizing of the 307 kWp power plant on 1,325 m², optimization of the self-consumption + resale model.

Installation of 707 photovoltaic canopies

Deployment in the building's parking lot — sun and weather protection for vehicles, local renewable energy production.

Self-consumption model with resale of surplus

86% of the energy produced is self-consumed on site, 14% is sold back to the EDF OA network — optimizing profitability.

Mobilization of state aid

Preparation of public funding applications to reduce the remaining costs for the Department — full support on available schemes.

This project perfectly illustrates how a parking lot can become a concrete lever for energy transition in a community. The solar power plant locally produces the equivalent of the annual consumption of 88 households, while also offering our employees better protection for their vehicles.

Heritage Department of Corrèze · Tulle (19)