Nuclear, renewable: government puts forward its pawns in Parliament on its energy policy

After adoption at a large majority of the text on nuclear in the Senate, parliamentarians reached an agreement on Tuesday in joint joint committee on the bill on renewable energies.

by Mariama Darame and Jérémie Lamothe

A transpartisan agreement on renewable energies, an adoption to a large majority of the text on nuclear in the Senate … In a few hours, the government managed, Tuesday, January 24, to cross a series of hedges in parliament on its two projects law devoted to the energy question.

If the adoption at first reading by the Senate of the text reviving the nuclear sector was hardly in doubt – with 239 votes for, 16 against and 78 abstentions -, the equation seemed less obvious for the executive for The joint joint commission (CMP) devoted to the bill of acceleration of renewable energies.

It was finally around 9:40 p.m. that the white smoke came out of this body which brings together seven deputies and seven senators and where the right has a short majority. Five hours of negotiations will have enabled the presidential coalition to achieve its ends: find a compromise with elected officials Les Républicains (LR) and centrists who dominate the Senate, while retaining the support, at the Palais-Bourbon, of the Socialists and the Centrist group freedoms, independent, overseas and territories which had voted the bill on January 10.

At the end of this agreement found in CMP – without the deputy (LR) of the Orne Jérôme Nury, who abstained, and his colleagues (National Rally, Gard) Pierre Meurin and “Insoumis” Maxime Laisney (Seine-et-Marne), who voted against-, the two chambers must now adopt this final version of the bill during a solemn vote on January 31.

“It is the fruit of months of dialogue to fight against climate change, to build our energy independence and to protect the purchasing power of the French”, praised on Tuesday, the Minister of Energy Transition, Agnès Pannier- Runacher. A few hours earlier, the latter had also welcomed the adoption of her nuclear law in the Senate, seeing it as a “new step to concretize the revival of an ambitious and sustainable nuclear policy”.

“Make mayors of the actors of the energy transition”

If these two texts have obtained fairly disparate political supports, their aims are substantially the same: simplify certain administrative procedures by reducing in particular the remedies in order to develop nuclear and renewable projects to allow France to get out of energies fossils by 2050.

The pressure is all the greater for the executive, in terms of renewable energies, it was once again pinned on Tuesday to have failed in its commitments. According to the observ’er barometer, France will not respect its objective of renewable electricity production by the end of 2023, if it remains at its current rate – 20 gigawatts against 24.1 gigawatts expected.

You have 63.94% of this article to read. The continuation is reserved for subscribers.

/Media reports cited above.