Wildfire reaches edge of Cestas solar plant in Gironde, France

What happened

In the night of 25 to 26 July 2026, a wildfire that had been burning across Gironde for about a week reached the Cestas solar plant, described as the largest in France at 300 MW and located between Bordeaux and Arcachon. Flames approaching from the west came within a few metres of the northern edge of the site. Firefighters, including a detachment from French-speaking Switzerland, were deployed overnight to protect the solar panel fields, and the source reports that a large part of the installation was preserved.

The plant is operated by Neoen, which holds 40 per cent of it, with the remaining 60 per cent held by other shareholders. The plant was shut down while checks were carried out, and part of its grid frequency support service to RTE was suspended. No restart date had been given.

Contributing factors

Extreme wildfire conditions in Gironde, including pyrocumulonimbus behaviour in which the fire generated its own wind and became erratic, according to local fire services. The fire reached within a few metres of the site boundary. The source does not state what firebreaks or vegetation management were in place.

Lessons learned

1. Solar sites near forest or scrub should maintain firebreaks and defensible space, and agree pre-planned access and water supply with fire services.
2. In a wildfire, protection priorities should target inverters, cabling and substations, which are more fragile than the panels themselves.
3. After a fire passes near an array, inspect cables, inverters and substations before re-energising.
4. Plan for suspension of grid services and revenue when a plant must be taken offline for inspection.

More lessons on fire suppression and firefighting, weather and external hazards, electrical protection and isolation, maintenance, inspection and ageing assets, from every incident on the register.

Source

les-energies-renouvelables.eu