The country’s nuclear power company finally fixes the cracks in its aging fleet of reactors
France is now Europe’s largest energy exporter, thanks to a surge of British demand. This comes after France’s nuclear power operator, backed by the government, finally repaired cracks in the reactors that were aging.
According to Enappsys, the data analysis company, the country’s net exports in 2023 were 17.6 TWh for its first six-month period. This would be enough to power about 5 million homes for an entire year.
Enappsys reported that most of the energy was imported by Italy and Britain. These two countries were the largest energy importers in Europe during the same time period.
Jean-Paul Harreman of EnAppSys said that the increased exports to France in comparison with the previous year were due to the availability of nuclear assets.
Clement Bouilloux is Enappsys French territory manager. He said that the figures showed the UK, which imports about half of its gas, was one of the countries most vulnerable to a new spike in price.
Gas also fuels around a third (33%) of UK electricity generation. Therefore, rising gas prices are usually accompanied by rising electricity prices. Mr Bouilloux stated: “The UK relies on gas imported from abroad and it is expensive to produce electricity using gas power plants.”
France’s EDF had to shut down a number of its nuclear plants in the past year due to corrosion and cracks found in pipes used to cool the reactor cores. The company expects to increase nuclear production by 20pc this year.
Mr Harreman stated: “Although the availability is still 10-15% lower than normal, an increase of capacity between 5 and 10GW over last year has helped flip the French energy imbalance to export.
The high-voltage cables that are buried beneath the seabed and connect electricity systems in neighbouring countries allow excess power to easily be traded between countries.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero published figures showing that net electricity imports increased 44pc during the first quarter of 2023, compared to the same period one year ago. This was due to the fall in French electricity prices.
Enappsys reported that a surge of hydropower production due to heavy rainfall in France also increased exports. Mr Harreman stated: “As the French market began to receive cheaper generation, the UK started to export again.” The price difference ensured cheaper electricity flowed from France into Britain.”
Germany also became a net importer of energy in the first half 2023, as its last three nuclear power stations were shut down.
Germany began to use nuclear power in 1961. In the early 2000s the country implemented its first nuclear power phase-out plan. This was then accelerated after the Fukushima catastrophe in Japan in 2011. The decision has only exacerbated the energy crisis in the country as it continues to wean off Russian energy.
Enappsys stated: “The main reason for the shift in energy balance to imports was the closure of nuclear plants.” In periods when renewable energy was low, Germany had to import additional power.