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Introduction

France is the second largest producer of nuclear power in the world, behind only the United States. Nuclear power supplies almost 75% of the entire country’s electricity needs, a share of production outpacing any other country on earth. With over 58 nuclear reactors across 19 different production sites, nuclear power is an integral part of France’s energy infrastructure. Given its relatively low cost of production and carbon-free emissions, France retains one of the lowest carbon-emission rates per capita in the entire world and realizes 3 billion in annual revenue from exporting nuclear-sourced electricity to neighboring countries like Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Contemporary energy policy eyes to lower the share of nuclear power-generated electricity to 50% of national supply by 2035. Between 1973 and 2011, France transitioned from 20 to 442 TWh of electricity produced from nuclear.

History

After the oil crisis of 1973, oil prices skyrocketed and France faced a problem in supplying citizens with reasonably priced electricity. With a culturally strong technical background in heavy engineering and few known indigenous energy sources, in 1974 the French government resolved to develop rampant nuclear energy production capacity in order to realize low-cost energy independence. In 1999, the French Parliament reaffirmed the path towards nuclear development, given a desire to lower greenhouse gas emissions and natural gas’ lack of economic competitiveness compared to the cost of nuclear. In the early 2000s, the government began sponsoring “energy debates” to deliberate over support for the nuclear program, and in the early 2010s sizeable opposition to the continued use of nuclear power rose. After the 2011 Fukushima disaster, some older reactors in the Alsace region were considered at high risk for seismic and flooding activity. With the 2012 election of Francis Hollande, a policy of reducing the country’s dependence on nuclear energy grew robust, and legislation soon followed.

Initiatives

In 2014, the Energy Transition for Green Growth Bill targeted a 50% share of electricity produced by nuclear power by 2050, theoretically maintaining nuclear production at current levels and increasing infrastructure related to renewable energy. The bill includes provisions for carbon-tax goals and expanded research and development of renewable energy, along with the simultaneous closure of all coal plants and most of the current nuclear sites. One conundrum France faces is that new, more technologically advanced nuclear reactors are set to come online in the early 2020s, making any sort of true removal of nuclear power impossible. In November of 2018, an updated version of the Green Growth Bill transitioned the target date for 50% of electricity sourced from nuclear from 2050 to 2035 and set timelines for the closure of certain older plants. At one point in 2017, the French legislature had eyed 2025 as the new date for the shift to 50% nuclear, although that idea was scrapped, with the French president Macron reasoning that nuclear “is the most carbon-free way to produce electricity with renewables.” February 2020 saw the initial realization of these initiatives, as the Fessenheim plant, on the border with Germany (who staunchly opposed such proximate production given the dangers of radioactivity), began the process of shutting down its reactors, which will continue through June. Eventually, 14 of the country’s 58 nuclear reactors will end operations, along with all of currently operating coal plants. The Fessenheim has been operating for 43 years, and the assumed life span of a safely operated reactor is 40 years. Much of the country’s nuclear is aging, and the heightened risk of some sort of disaster like Fukushima has spurred many critics of nuclear power to action.

National Debate

Despite rampant success in achieving energy independence, many critics cite the danger of radioactive exposure in the event of an unfortunate accident. While France has avoided any complications so far, waste disposal is a critical and challenging operation that remains a problem going forward. Despite the highlighted risks, the French government has poured over $160 billion into their nuclear program over the past few decades and is the majority owner of all the major players across the nuclear supply chain. Anti-nuclear activists cite the massive subsidies that the nuclear program benefits from and argue that it is challenging the competitiveness of renewable production. Ironically, the rampant supply of nuclear energy in France is the proximate cause of the country’s astronomically low carbon-emissions per capita. Given the continued shutdown of the nuclear reactors across the country, France will face a difficult challenge in achieving future carbon-emission goals. At current levels, the production cost of renewables like wind and solar are not economically viable alternatives to nuclear. On top of carbon-minded arguments, many of the highest-paying, government-secured, technical jobs across the entirety of France are supplied by the nuclear sector, and the new Green Growth Bill is set to dissolve many of them.

Sources

Nuclear Energy Institute. “Top 15 Nuclear Generating Countries.” https://www.nei.org/resources/statistics/top-15-nuclear-generating-countries

World Nuclear Association. “Nuclear Power in France.” https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-a-f/france.aspx

Nuclear Threat Initiative. “France”. https://www.nti.org/learn/countries/france/nuclear/

Digges, Charles. “France begins winding down its reliance on nuclear power.” Bellona. Jan 2020. https://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2020-03-france-begins-winding-down-its-reliance-on-nuclear-power

Nuclear Service, French Embassy in Washington. “Nuclear Power in France.” July 2013. https://franceintheus.org/IMG/pdf/Nuclear_power_in_France.pdf