Within the framework of the European POLIS programme, whose mission is to get urban planners to give more consideration to solar energy supplies, the City of Paris is piloting an experimental solar power registry.
Apur has been given the task of creating this tool, which is unique in France. Via a simulation of annual solar radiation it has become possible to visualise the potential of the surfaces of buildings, gather information on their level of insulation and thus identify the best places to install solar panels.
There is a two-pronged approach to the objective involving both sustainable development and local renewable energy generation.
The solar power registry encourages a more serious consideration of possible solar energy use in the city, whether it be thermal (to heat water) or photovoltaic (to produce electricity).
In a context where there has been a structural increase in consumption of energy, the solar power registry will make it possible on the one hand to raise the awareness of private house owners (in particular those owning extensive properties) and on the other to strengthen public authority action at an environmental and also social level (by facilitating access to energy).
The Parisian solar power registry will be online from autumn 2012.
The City of Paris solar energy registry. Interview with Julien Bigorgne, environment engineer at Apur, on 12/13 Paris Île-de-France, Radio France Inter, 30th April 2012.