British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak visited Paris on Friday to sign two energy agreements with France. The first agreement is a comprehensive energy partnership, which includes cooperation in renewable energy, nuclear safety, CO2 capture to decarbonize industry, and interconnections to enable electricity imports and exports. The second agreement focuses exclusively on the nuclear industry.
A major investment in French renewable energy
The British company Octopus, the 3rd largest electricity distributor in the UK, has announced a €1 billion investment in the French green energy market over the next two years. Octopus, which acquired the distributor Plüm in France in January 2022, will thus become a producer and operator of wind and solar electricity. The goal is to supply green electricity to 300,000 households in France, compared to just under 100,000 at present, including the Paris City Hall and other local authorities.
Regular bilateral exchanges in the nuclear field
The signing of the cooperation agreement in the field of civil nuclear power between France and the United Kingdom could revive cooperation between the two countries, which boast in particular of the decarbonized nature of nuclear electricity. The two countries have promised to hold bilateral exchanges “before each major international climate or environmental meeting”.
EDF seeks investors for Sizewell C
The French state-owned group EDF is seeking investors for the Sizewell C new generation power plant project in Great Britain, which is being conducted on a par with the British government. EDF would like to see its share reduced to 20% from the initial 30%. Heavily in debt, EDF has warned that without new investors by 2024, the date set for the final investment decision, construction will not be completed. EDF owns and operates 10 reactors in five nuclear power stations in the UK. In 2022, EDF produced 43 Terawatt hours of nuclear electricity in Great Britain, compared to 41 in 2021.
Agreements signed by the British and French Secretaries of State for Energy
The two agreements were signed by the British Secretary of State for Energy Grant Shapps and the French Minister for Energy Transition Agnès Pannier-Runacher. No new interconnections have been announced at this stage, but a cost-benefit study on the subject is underway until the summer, the French Ministry of Energy Transition said.
