SNCF Energie, a unit of French railway operator SNCF, has agreed to buy 207 GWh of annual electricity supplies under a 25-year power purchase agreement from French independent power producer Reden, which is part of Australia's Macquarie Asset Management. It is the largest PPA ever signed by a French railway company.

“With this record contract, we are taking concrete action to strengthen the stability of our supply and our share of electricity from renewable sources,” SNCF said in a statement.

Reden will supply the electricity from four solar power plants it is now building in France. They include a 36 MW facility in Haute-Garonne, a 21 MW plant in Aude, and two plants in Gironde with capacities of 77 MW and 12 MW. The solar parks will be commissioned between 2024 and 2025 and all of the electricity will be sold to SNCF Energie.

SNCF Energie has been piloting a “corporate PPA” program since 2018. It has already signed eight PPAs, including one with French energy giant EDF and one with Switzerland's Axpo.