En June, we will elect the European Parliament for five years. The 2030 horizon is that of the climate emergency and the necessary energy transition to place us on a trajectory limiting the increase in temperatures to less than 2 degrees.
Beyond energy efficiency and sobriety, the first levers of this transition, France and Europe must invest in decarbonized means of producing electricity by 2030 to achieve a completely carbon-free mix. within ten years, capable of electrifying the transport, construction and industry sectors.
In 2023, electricity in Europe was based on 44% renewable energies, 33% fossil fuels (coal, gas and oil), 23% nuclear. According to RTE [Réseau de transport d’électricité]these figures were respectively 29%, 6% and 65% for France.
Against price volatility
The climate emergency is now! By 2035, nuclear electricity production in Europe will not be able to increase significantly given the delays in the construction of new power plants. Renewable energies are therefore the only ones capable of increasing our carbon-free electricity production capacities by then. A solar power plant project can be completed in two to three years, a wind farm in three to five years. Renewable energies also make it possible to combat the volatility of energy prices in the particularly unstable geopolitical context.
Annual investments in renewable electrical energies now exceed those made in any other form of energy in the world, in Europe and in France. In 2023, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), additions of new photovoltaic and wind capacity have increased by 50% compared to 2022 and are growing exponentially. Photovoltaic and wind power represent more than 12% of global electricity production; they were non-existent in the early 2000s.
This spectacular deployment is due to the fact that they are now the most competitive for the production of electricity: much less expensive than fossil fuels or new nuclear power. Photovoltaic prices have been divided by a factor of more than 10 in less than ten years. Those of wind power have also fallen sharply.
Variability is no longer an obstacle
Several scenarios carried out by different institutions (RTE, EDF, Ademe, etc.), show that the variability of wind power and photovoltaics is no longer an obstacle to their massive penetration into the electricity mix. Cross-border electricity exchanges, energy storage (batteries, hydroelectricity, biomass cogeneration and soon hydrogen), as well as intelligent network and demand management, provide the flexibility necessary to achieve energy rates renewables in the mix greater than 70% or 80%.
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