EEVblog 1603 – Colas Wattway Solar Roadways is DEAD

The 1km Colas Wattway Solar Roadway in Normandy in France is finally being scrapped.
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€5M of taxpayer money down the drain. That money could have bought a 5MW commercial solar farm that produced 15 times the output power, and lasted decades longer.

Forum: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/blog/eevblog-1603-colas-wattway-solar-roadways-is-dead/

Reference links:
https://www.auto-moto.com/en-bref/cette-route-solaire-qui-a-coute-5-millions-d-euros-va-etre-demantelee-30624
https://actu.fr/normandie/tourouvre-au-perche_61491/on-s-attendait-a-rencontrer-des-problemes-la-route-solaire-de-tourouvre-au-perche-une-idee-pas-si-lumineuse_53438905.html
https://time.com/4616912/solar-panel-france/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/dec/22/solar-panel-road-tourouvre-au-perche-normandy
https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnparnell/2019/08/21/frances-solar-highway-was-always-a-road-to-nowhere/?sh=783cb5c971b6
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/france-solar-panel-roads
https://www.businessinsider.com/first-solar-road-france-failure-photos-2019-8
https://www.colas.com/en/innovation/greater-mobility-lower-impact/
https://mymodernmet.com/france-wattway-solar-road/
https://www.marketwatch.com/guides/solar/solar-farm-cost/#:~:text=Solar%20Project%20Size&text=At%20an%20average%20price%20of,the%20intention%20of%20selling%20electricity.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/infrastructure/a28720252/french-solar-road-failure/
https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/frances-first-ever-solar-panel-road-appears-to-have-some-serious-issues/
https://www.wattwaybycolas.com/en/references/photos.html

Technical specs: https://www.wattwaybycolas.com/media/documents/documents-en-anglais/dp-wattway-pack-gb.pdf

Map: https://www.google.com.au/maps/@48.5872378,0.647139,3a,75y,189.86h,63.17t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sRGiblnJFqgFm2wye5_F_1Q!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

My previous videos on Colas Wattway:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjbKYNcmFUw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpwx-8s1M38

The near 18 year grift of Solar Freak’n Roadways:
https://www.startengine.com/offering/solar-roadways

00:00 – Colas Wattway Solar Roadways is DEAD
07:47 – Not even the biggest road construction company can make Solar Roadways work
08:32 – Even Colas admit it’s a failed concept
10:13 – How may homes can it power?
11:29 – How big a solar farm can you buy for €5M ?
13:16 – One final walk down the biggest solar roadway in the world
16:37 – What ever happened to Solar Freak’n Roadways?

Podcast: Download