More than a third of them would be opposed to seeing the 375 billion euros saved invested in the atomic sector.
New French split on nuclear power. The ambitious project to relaunch the atomic industry requires pharaonic means. Building six new generation EPR2 reactors, as Emmanuel Macron wishes, would cost at least 51.7 billion euros according to EDF estimates. A tidy sum that the electricity group, whose financial results are in freefall, does not have.
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This is why the government is thinking of redirecting part of the billions of euros saved by the French via their savings account A. And even if the Ministry of Energy Transition affirms that “the financing options for new nuclear power are being studied, without any orientation having been decided upon at this stage“, Éric Lombard, the director general of the Caisse des dépôts et consignation (CDC), spoke before the National Assembly for “finance the transformation of the energy production system via Livret A savings“.
Concretely, part of the 375 billion euros thus collected by the CDC would be invested in the program of construction of nuclear power plants, in addition to the traditional financing of social housing and urban renewal. But the hypothesis put forward is far from unanimous among the 55 million savers.
The results of the poll conducted by Yougov for MoneyVox show a fairly clear division on the issue. “If 45% of those polled are in favor of the idea of financing nuclear power (16% totally in favor and 29% rather favorable), 37% are opposed to this idea (17% rather unfavorable and 20% totally unfavourable)” details the study. These figures perfectly illustrate the fact thathe financing of power plants by the preferred investment of the French is far from reaching a consensusremarks Maxime Chipoy, president of MoneyVox.
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However, the knowledge of the French on the use of their Livret A remains very limited. “30% of respondents have no idea how the sums deposited in their savings account are used”. “Even the financing of social housing – 1st of its missions – is known only to 39% of them, and essentially by the oldest. The other missions are almost unknown says Maxime Chipoy. Despite everything, the idea of financing the energy transition is appealing. Nearly two-thirds of respondents are in favor of it. And precisely, since last July, the nuclear sector has been classified among the green investments of the European Union.