A French court has confirmed that a BESS can be compatible with agricultural activity, potentially easing development constraints for battery projects on land used for farming.
The Nantes Administrative Court of Appeal recorded the French Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs’ withdrawal of its appeal against a 2025 ruling by the Rennes Administrative Court. The withdrawal makes the Rennes ruling final and upholds a permit for an electricity storage project developed by Renouvelables et Stockage (R&S) in Redon, Ille-et-Vilaine.
The project comprises battery containers, inverters, transformers, two delivery substations and a fire-water reservoir. R&S submitted its planning application in August 2024.
The project is located in a Na zone under Redon’s local planning rules rather than a designated agricultural zone, but the land is used for agricultural purposes. The project occupies 8,122 m² of a 20,583 m² landholding. The farmer has committed to maintaining forage production on the remaining 12,461 m² and said the project would not affect the agricultural operation.
The Rennes court ruled that the project could be authorized in the Na zone and considered it a technical structure specifically designed to operate the electricity network because it is connected to the public transmission network and contributes to balancing electricity production and consumption.
The court also found that the project was not incompatible with agricultural activity. It referred to Article L.151-11 of France’s Urban Planning Code, which allows certain structures and installations required for collective infrastructure in agricultural, natural and forest areas, provided they are not incompatible with agricultural, pastoral or forestry activity.
The ruling does not establish a general right to build BESS projects on agricultural land. Instead, compatibility must be assessed on a project-by-project basis, taking into account factors including the project’s footprint and whether agricultural activity can continue on the remaining land.
The decision comes amid several recent French legal disputes over BESS projects on agricultural land. In June 2026, the Lille Administrative Court suspended the withdrawal of a tacit planning permit for a 250 MW battery storage project. The Rouen Administrative Court issued a similar decision involving a stationary battery storage project the following month.
From pv magazine France
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