Facing rising electricity bills in 2022, the Oléron Island Community of Communes, local municipalities, and the EAU17 and SIFICES unions joined forces to develop an energy autonomy solution. The SOLAIR'IO project relies on collective self-consumption photovoltaic installations, enabling electricity produced to be consumed at identified sites, even when geographically distant.
This innovative project required two key steps: obtaining a ministerial waiver to cover the entire territory of the island and securing European funding for custom-designed installations better integrated into the Oléron landscape.
Work, which began in early 2026, includes the construction of 12 photovoltaic installations located on rooftops, ground-mounted, or on parking lot canopies across the municipalities of Saint-Georges-d’Oléron, Saint-Pierre-d’Oléron, Dolus-d’Oléron, Grand-Village-Plage, and Saint-Trojan-Les-Bains. These installations will supply electricity to about a hundred public facilities, achieving up to 45% annual electrical autonomy.
The SOLAIR'IO association, managed by the Community of Communes, handles investments and sells the production at a fixed price of 12 c€/kWh excl. VAT for 20 years. The total investment amounts to 2.9 million euros, with 40% funded by European funds and a subsidized loan from the Banque des Territoires.
“"This is a territorial project, innovative, exemplary, and virtuous! La Lumineuse Oléron uses an abundant local renewable resource, the sun, to produce decarbonized electricity and supply public infrastructure at a lower cost: a true short circuit for renewable electricity!"
Fabienne FORD, Vice-President for Energy and Climate, highlighted the project's significance for the Île d'Oléron's energy transition, the result of a four-year collaboration between local public stakeholders and partners like Enedis and the Nouvelle Aquitaine Region.
