Developing solar energy on a large scale while preserving local ecosystems is one of the major challenges of the energy transition. At Urbasolar, this ambition translates into a rigorous and structured approach to biodiversity, grounded in the expertise of its teams… and now enhanced by artificial intelligence.
Environmental protection integrated into every stage of our projects
For Urbasolar, protecting biodiversity—and the environment more broadly—is not merely a regulatory requirement. It is integrated from the very design phase of our solar power plants and monitored throughout their entire lifecycle, across all stages: development, construction, operation, and decommissioning!
“Biodiversity is at the heart of how we design, build, and operate our solar power plants. Our decisions are based on field observations and objective data, not on assumptions,” explains Julien Burato, Environmental Manager at Urbasolar.
The environmental teams thus work alongside the development, construction, and operations teams to rigorously apply the “avoid–reduce–compensate” approach, while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and the effectiveness of the measures implemented.
Long-term ecological monitoring
Since its founding in 2006, Urbasolar has built a particularly comprehensive ecological database based on environmental monitoring conducted at its operational solar power plants. These studies enable the analysis of the presence of protected species, population trends, site use by flora and fauna, and the effectiveness of measures to promote biodiversity.
This data is essential for:
- processing permit applications for new projects,
- demonstrating the compatibility of solar energy with biodiversity,
- continuously improving environmental practices at existing sites.
But this wealth of information also presented a challenge: quickly analyzing hundreds of technical reports, many of which are highly site-specific.
An AI chatbot to turn data into informed decisions
To address this challenge, Urbasolar’s IT teams developed an internal chatbot based on artificial intelligence, deployed in March 2025. Built on the Microsoft Azure ecosystem, it centralizes all ecological and environmental monitoring reports for the company’s solar portfolio
Thanks to a user-friendly interface and simple language, teams can now access information in seconds that was previously scattered across numerous documents. This information is thus available in real time, providing answers with examples drawn from our own data on the impact of environmental measures.
Thus, beyond saving time, the chatbot plays a key role in the quality of interactions with authorities, partners, and stakeholders.
“Some concerns stem from general perceptions of solar power. We can now address these with concrete observations from operational solar power plants, showing, for example, that species are settling in, reproducing, and coexisting sustainably with solar installations,” explains Julien Burato.
The tool thus enhances the credibility of projects by drawing on consistent, consolidated data across the Urbasolar portfolio.
Technology in the Service of Sustainable Energy
By combining on-the-ground ecological expertise, stakeholder dialogue, and advanced digital tools, Urbasolar demonstrates a strong conviction: the energy transition is not limited to producing renewable electricity.
It also involves understanding, respecting, and protecting the regions and biodiversity where projects are located.
With this biodiversity chatbot, Urbasolar further strengthens its ability to develop responsible solar energy, grounded in data, evidence, and continuous improvement—all in the service of truly sustainable energy.