This new record, which had been on track since the fall, was confirmed by a member of the RTE board of directors on Thursday January 2.
After the difficulties of winter 2021-2022, the French nuclear fleet has regained its vigor (illustration) (AFP / OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE)
An “exceptional value”. In a publication posted on the LinkedIn network, an executive director of RTE, Thomas Veyrenc, announced that
France broke its annual record for net electricity exports in 2024,
more than 20 years old (2002), setting the new mark at 89TWh.
Last November, RTE had already hinted at such a hypothesis, counting on a forecast of around 85 TWh at the end of December. According to
Les Echos
which cites the latest estimates from EDF, the total electricity production figure, which must be confirmed in the coming weeks, should be around 500 TWh, including 358 to 364 TWh of nuclear production.
“France exported to all borders: Germany-Belgium (+27.2 TWh), Italy (+22.3 TWh) United Kingdom (+21 TWh), Switzerland (+16.7 TWh), to a lesser extent measure Spain (+2.8 TWh)”
detailed Thomas Veyrenc, who points to two explanations for this record.
The first, positive, is that of a regained production capacity. After the stress corrosion crisis, which damaged the French nuclear fleet during a winter of 2021-2022 under tension, the country's power plants have returned, in the words of EDF CEO Luc Rémont, to a level of production ” not far from optimum”, despite ongoing reactor maintenance. France also benefited from “exceptionally high” hydraulic production due to rainfall in recent months. It was thus more than 62 TWh at the end of October, up around 40% compared to 2023 with dams largely full as winter approaches.
The second explanation lies in the
electricity consumption in France, which does not reach the expected level, and reflects the difficulties in terms of industrial production.
Demand is struggling to take off, while several large sectors, construction and the automobile industry, are struggling.
Billions in the balance
These good figures for French electricity production will, despite these nuances, have a positive impact.
This “will be counted in billions of euros as a positive factor for the French trade balance”,
had thus anticipated Thomas Veyrenc as early as November. “Our forecast balance sheets have long shown that
France would find itself, in the mid-2020s, in a position to export around a hundred TWh per year: we are there”,
he comments.
RTE also reports that although electricity consumption remains at a “low level”, it has stopped decreasing, unlike in previous years. “It seems to have reached a level from which it would gradually trend upward over the coming years,” indicates the manager.
