The principle of photovoltaics is to produce electricity directly from sunlight. Non-polluting, silent and with no impact on the environment. In France we have used PV (photovoltaic) generators on remote and isolated sites for more than two decades. However the idea of connecting these generators to the public power supply is relatively new.

A system, in its most basic form, uses panels to capture sunlight and produce electricity plus a transformer which suitably converts the initial electricity for connection to the network. The power thus generated is sold to the operator, typically the EDF or one of the regional suppliers.

Not to be confused with thermal solar systems, which are usually used for domestic water heating thereby reducing household fuel bills, a PV solar system can be regarded not only as an important method of impacting your carbon footprint but also as as veritable profit centre in its' own right.

Today, the whole PV concept is becoming more and more interesting, not only from an environmental standpoint. Thanks to various subsidies - tax credits (upto 50% of the price of materials) and regional aid programmes there has never been a finer moment to invest in the future...