Suntech's rooftop PV system earns France's top FIT rate

Suntech Power Holdings’ rooftop solar-energy system has won the approval of France’s evaluation committee for building integrated photovoltaic products, an agency known as CEIAB.

The OK means that French homeowners and businesses that install the company’s Just Roof technology will qualify for the country’s highest solar feed-in tariff (FIT) rates.

Feed-in tariffs provide payments to consumers who install renewable energy technologies and feed at least some of the energy they generate back into the power grid.

Starting in January 2012, commercial and residential buildings in France will need to comply with the country’s RT 2012 law, which regulates the carbon dioxide emissions and energy consumption of buildings. Renewable energy technologies such as Suntech’s Just Roof system, which is designed to integrate seamlessly into rooftops, will help buildings comply with the new regulations.