Dispatch from France | July '25

Stories to watch in the weeks ahead

• Natural hydrogen deposits detected in France - Deposits of natural hydrogen - also known as "white” hydrogen - have been detected in three regions of France (Aquitaine, Pyrenees and Lorraine). Hydrogen burns to produce only water, making it a clean energy source when its produced without causing emissions. While it's hard to say at this stage whether the naturally occurring deposits can be exploited or not, white hydrogen differs from other forms used worldwide: These are mostly “grey” hydrogen, which is extracted from natural gas using a process that emits a lot of CO2, and, to a lesser extent, “green” hydrogen, which comes from water electrolysis powered with renewable energy sources. Exploration drilling is to be recommended despite the technical and economic outlook still being unclear as the deposits hold such a high potential for French energy sovereignty, according to the Ministry of the Economy and Industry.

• How to finance nuclear power? - The draft agreement between France’s government and national energy company EDF to finance six planned new nuclear power plants has yet to be approved by the European Commission, whose green light is required before construction work can begin. In the meantime, however, EDF must submit its cost estimate and proposed scheduling of future reactors by the end of 2025. According to previous estimates, new construction could cost up to 80 billion euros, compared with the 52 billion euros initially announced in 2020.  But financing the construction of reactors is only part of the costly bill for harnessing nuclear power: dealing with nuclear waste comes with its own very high price. The French National Audit Office (Cour des Comptes) has warned of the urgent need to manage certain categories of nuclear waste. The possible commissioning of the Cigéo project, a geological burial centre for an estimated 83,000 cubic meters of the most hazardous nuclear waste near the rural municipality of Bure, in eastern France, has been postponed until 2050. The project could cost between 26 and 37 billion euros over 150 years, raising the question of how to guarantee funding over time. The government will have to take a position on the auditors’ figures before the start of 2026. And the clean-up bill is likely to get even bigger as over 280,000 cubic meters of low-level radioactive waste is still without a permanent disposal solution, according to the auditors.

• France's energy future still under debate - After much deliberation, the Senate has adopted a bill on energy and climate policy planning for the years 2025 to 2035, calling for a revival of nuclear power and a “reinforcement” of renewable energies. The senators also urged the government to wait for the final adoption of this law before finalising its multi-year energy plan (PPE), as the text’s parliamentary procedure is ongoing and due to be examined again at the end of September. The bill calls for the construction of 14 new optimised European Pressurised Reactors (EPR-2s) in order to reach 27 GW of additional nuclear capacity by 2050 - with the first six reactors entering operation by 2035. As far as renewables are concerned, expansion targets by sector remain unclear until at least after the summer break. As it stands, the text provides for over a third of all decarbonised electricity generated to be sourced from renewables, and 58 percent of energy consumed to be of decarbonised origin (including nuclear) by 2030, compared with around 40 percent at present. A first version of the text, previously examined by France’s parliament, the National Assembly, was rejected in June after the centre-right party Les Républicains MPs, supported by the far-right Rassemblement National MPs, introduced a moratorium on wind power and photovoltaics. In an amended version, the modernisation of existing installations is encouraged over the construction of new wind turbines.

The latest from France – last month in recap

• Growing impatience in the energy sector - About 20 electricity trade unions and industry federations are keeping up the pressure on the government to clarify its energy policy course. They want the decree of the PPE that sets out the roadmap for France's energy future to be published "without delay", as the text is already two years overdue. Without the plan, it is impossible for energy sector groups to secure their investments, launch calls for tenders (particularly in offshore wind energy), anticipate training and employment needs, and plan infrastructures. ."Faced with the contradictory messages sent out in recent weeks, particularly on the role of renewable energies (...), the publication of the PPE decree would remind everyone of the complementary nature of nuclear and electric renewable energies, and send a strong signal of confidence to the industry," write the signatories, which include the French Electricity Union, the Renewable Energies Union and the Federation of Electrical, Electronic and Communication Industries.

• 20 power plant extensions amid heated nuclear debate - The lifespan of 20 of the 57 remaining French nuclear reactors which were scheduled to operate for only 40 years has been extended by the nuclear safety authority, Autorité de sûreté nucléaire, after undergoing extensive maintenance. Power company EDF will have to spend six billion euros to extend their operation for another ten years in order to fill the gap until the new EPRs are ready in 2038. The decision comes at a time when questions over the role of nuclear and renewable power  are dividing the government. In an op-ed published in newspaper Le Figaro in early July, interior minister and president of Les Républicains, Bruno Retailleau, called for a halt on the financing of renewable energies. The French minister for ecological transition, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, didn't mince her words, when describing these statements as “dramatic”, ‘irresponsible’ and “populist”. For his part, president Emmanuel Macron reacted by stressing the need for both renewable and nuclear energy.

• French lobbying in Brussels - In light of competition from China and the United States, the European Commission presented a new scheme to facilitate the approval of state aid by EU member states to develop low-carbon technologies, including nuclear power. At the request of France, Sweden and Poland in particular, who were invoking “technological neutrality”, it introduces the non-discrimination of nuclear power against renewable energies to reduce CO2 emissions. 

 Camille’s picks – highlights from upcoming events and top reads

• France under air conditioning - To cope with heat waves, at least a quarter of the French population is now equipped with air conditioners! All of which fuels... global warming, as these appliances contain gases with a very high climate impact. They particularly contribute to the phenomenon of urban heat islands, fuelling a vicious circle that affects the whole world. Newspaper Le Monde investigated this “maladaptation” trend in the country, underlining wide disparities among the French populace in adopting AC units. But the phenomenon (notably encouraged by the extreme right party) is set to grow: grid operator RTE estimates that 50 percent of French homes could be air-conditioned by 2035. Beyond the criticism, the newspaper highlights ways to curb its use.

• Will nuclear power ruin France? - In her investigative book “Nuclear power will ruin France” (published by Editions du Seuil), journalist Laure Noualhat takes a hard line on an energy source that is much more expensive than initially expected. Her investigation is also available as a documentary (created with her colleague Clarisse Feletin) on the Reporterre channel, an independent media outlet specialising in environmental and climate issues. Its point: the nuclear sector is not subject to any of the economic rules that prevail in other industrial sectors.