Tarabise
The Tarabise plant in Saint Auban
The Tarabise solar plant is located in the municipality of Saint-Auban, in the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeast France, in the hamlets of La Tarabise, La Grande Pièce, Les Jas and Les Colettes. The plant has an installed capacity of 11.5 MWp.
On 10 hectares (25 acres) of land belonging to the county of Alpes-Maritimes, the plant combines the production of electricity from renewable sources and environmental compliance.
The Tarabise plant is the first project invested in by the county of Alpes Maritimes via its local semi-public company (SEML GREEN Energy 06), of which it is the majority shareholder alongside SICTIAM, Caisse d’Epargne, Caisse des Dépôts and Crédit Agricole. Developed and constructed by Akuo, the Tarabise plant became operational in the fall of 2022 and is scheduled to operate for a period of 30 years, after which it will be dismantled and the site restored.
“As we do with a certain number of our projects now, we decided to open up the financing to all French citizens by refinancing part of our investment via AkuoCoop, our crowdfunding platform. We raised the sought-after total of 500,000 euros in record time – just 3 days! We are observing that, today, energy is not just in the hands of producers, which we welcome. We can now all be actors of the ecological transition by giving real meaning to our savings.”
Our CSR commitment
Agricultural production and biodiversity
A pocket of ancient woodland with a similar surface area to the plant and a biodiversity reservoir are planned in order to develop the site’s biodiversity. Two livestock farmers and a beekeeper are established on the site with the creation of a grazing area adjacent to the plant for raising sheep, as well as the installation of beehives to produce local honey. This plant incorporates several environmental measures notably established with France Nature Environnement and the PACA branch of the LOP (bird protection society).
Educational panels and workshops
Educational panels have been installed along a marked trail to increase visitors’ awareness of solar energy. Furthermore, educational workshops on solar energy are organized with neighboring villages’ schools.
