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France was an early thought leader in the worldwide energy transition. As the host of COP 21 and the Paris Agreement, France is often regarded by the international community as a forerunner in the energy transition.

France is making serious moves to catch up in the next years to fulfill its nationally determined targets by pursuing major reforms in the energy sector.

France Energy Mix

France has an extremely low-carbon electricity mix due to its huge nuclear power fleet, which is the second-largest after the US. Nuclear energy accounted for almost 69 percent of the electricity generation in France in 2021. Coal, natural gas, liquid fuels, and renewables are the other principal sources of energy in France. 

In 2021, about 2.7 GW of solar panels were deployed, amounting to a 13% increase in solar PV power generation. Unfavorable weather conditions, on the other hand, lowered hydropower and wind power generation by 5% and 7%, respectively, reducing total generation from renewable sources.

Thermal power generation climbed slightly (+3%) in 2021 but remained 8% lower than in 2019. France remained Europe's largest electricity exporter, with rising exports and imports (87 TWh and 44 TWh, respectively).

According to the French power transmission system operator (TSO) RTE, electricity consumption in France will rise by 1.7 percent in 2021 to 468 TWh, spurred by the economic recovery. The industrial sector's consumption increased by 8% compared to 2020, with the steel industry (+20%) leading the way while the car industry lagged. Power generation climbed by 4.5 percent to 522.9 TWh (2.7 percent less than in 2019), with nuclear accounting for 69 percent of total generation.

With the expected increase in the energy demand, France is planning to deploy more renewable sources of energy to fullfill its national climate commitments and dependence on fossil fuels.

France, a forerunner in establishing an ambitious energy transition plan, enacted a net-zero emissions by 2050 plan in its 2019 Energy and Climate Act. The national low-carbon strategy with 5-year carbon budgets and a multi-year energy investment plan supplements the countrys energy transition goal.

France Renewable Energy Scenario

Hydropower, wind, solar, and bioenergy are the major renewable energy sources in France. Hydropower accounts for half of all renewable electricity generation. Wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) power output have increased over the last decade, increasing the share of renewables in electricity generation from 14 percent in 2010 to 23.4 percent in 2020. 

France Hydropower

As of December 31, 2021, the hydropower sector is the second-largest source of French electricity, with an installed capacity of 25,718 MW it is the first among renewable electricity sources.

The sector produced 58.4 TWh of renewable electricity over one year, which is down by 4.5% relative to 2020. The annual rate of coverage of energy consumption by hydropower production is 12.4% for 2021. 

France Wind Energy

In the European Union, France is the third country in terms of wind power installed capacity with 18,676 MW (by the end of 2021), only behind Germany (63,760 MW) and Spain (27,497 MW). The onshore wind dominates the installed wind energy capacity in France with 18,676 MW, whereas offshore wind is scarce with only 2 MW of installed capacity.

To achieve its 2023 objective, France will have to more than double the current installed capacity each year and maintain a rate of nearly 2 GW additions per year and the government is taking aggressive steps to do so.

France Solar Energy

As of December 31, 2021, solar energy in France reached an installed capacity of 13,067 MW. In 2021, the solar sector produced about 14.3 TWh of electricity, an increase of 12.6 percent over the previous year, covering 3% of France's electricity consumption.

The volume of solar installations under development was 11,048 MW as of December 31, 2021. Over the year, the power of projects under development shows a significant increase of 31%, which confirms the strong increases observed since 2018.

The government is keen on leveraging the solar energy source of the country. For instance, in Feb 2022, France announced its 100 GW solar target for 2050, under which it will install 5 GW of new PV capacity per year.

France Bioenergy 

Renewable electricity produced by the bioenergy sector reached 8 TWh in 2021, an increase of 3.8% compared to 2020. The sector's production covers an average of 1.7% of the country’s electricity consumption in 2021 (with maximum coverage of 2.2% in July-August 2021 and minimum coverage of 1.3% in January 2021). 

France Renewable Energy Policy

France's decarbonization framework, which is anchored in the Energy Transition Law of 2015, builds on the National Low-Carbon Strategy for 2050 (Stratégie Nationale Bas-Carbone, SNBC), which includes targets for reducing the use of fossil fuels and slashing down on greenhouse gas emissions over three five-year carbon budgets out to 2034.

Actions in the energy industry are carried out through two successive five-year energy investment plans (la programmation pluriannuelle de l'énergie, PPE). Different regions in the country are implementing their own climate and energy transition targets under regional plans for spatial planning, sustainable development, and equity, building on the SNBC and the PPE. Municipalities are developing climate, air, and energy strategies at the local level.

Since 2015, the French government has taken substantial steps to enhance domestic climate action on the path to net-zero emissions. The 2019 Energy and Climate Law mandated carbon neutrality by 2050 as well as a more stringent emissions reduction strategy (an 85 percent reduction by 2050 compared to 1990 levels). The government amended the SNBC and the PPE in 2020 in order to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

The French Parliament agreed on the "Climate and Resilience Law" on July 13, 2021, which should allow for a 40% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. 

What do we cover in the Report?

Blackridge Research's France Renewable Energy Market report contains the installed capacity of renewable power generation sources (year-on-year) until 2030, the list of ongoing and upcoming renewable power generation projects such as solar photovoltaic farms, concentrated solar power projects, onshore wind, and offshore wind energy projects and the regulatory scenario within the renewable energy market of France.

Furthermore, the Report will contain the drivers and restraints within France's Renewable Energy Market along with a meticulous evaluation of their impact in the near-, medium-, or longer term. Factors affecting renewable energy projects deployment include market conditions (e.g., cost, diversity, proximity to demand or transmission, and resource availability), policy decisions (e.g., tax credits, feed-in tariffs, and renewable portfolio standards), as well as country-specific regulations. Finally, the presentation would enable one to identify market opportunities and plan for long-term growth.

Get a free sample copy of the France Renewable Energy Market report by clicking the "Download a Free Sample Now!" button at the top of the page.