Their solar panel allows them to be self-sufficient in energy during the day.
At a time of energy sobriety, this almost unique example in Eure-et-Loir could well be emulated.
Sun to raise chickens, it is the idea of Antoine Sagette, Percheron farmer.
On his farm in La Tartanière, at the top of a hill in Saint-Bomer, stands a strange solar panel.
Like a sunflower, it follows the course of the sun, thanks to an astronomical algorithm.
The sun is shining and the snow which partly covers the panels does not prevent it from producing its electricity: “We consume zero on the network.
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Twelve meters wide by eleven meters high, all mounted on a seven-meter adjustable mast: the panel pivots on two axes, a clear advantage in terms of performance.
“22 kilowatts peak (kWp).
It is always oriented the right way, compared to fixed panels, which are usually oriented southwest.
Since our panel follows the sun, we benefit from the sun from morning to evening.
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Electricity can be resold for up to 1,500 euros per day
Cost of installation: just over 50,000 euros.
Ten years should make it possible to amortize the investment, perhaps less because part of the electricity produced by the farm is directly resold.
With the explosion in the cost of energy, electricity currently earns him three times more.
“It is resold during the day, according to the needs of the network.
It can be sold for 1,500 euros a day.
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With this device, the farm mainly saves on its own electricity bills.
The score for operating 20,000 laying hens has dropped by 60%.
This could be higher but the installation does not allow the electricity produced to be stored.
Over the past two years, the breeder has adapted his way of working to take advantage of solar energy.
“All consumption, we adapt it to the sun.
The system for drying chicken droppings, which previously ran at night and consumed a lot, is now running during the day.
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Finally, the other advantage of the solar tracker is that it allows machinery to work under the panel and therefore does not impact the agricultural surface.