“Concrete measures” are planned, including French aid for Germany through gas deliveries, while it will support France to “secure its supply of electricity”.
MO12345LEMONDE with AFP
The chiefs of French and German governments signed, Friday, November 25 in Berlin, an agreement on measures to allow “mutual support” between the two countries in order to “guarantee their energy supply”, when prices are blazing .
“concrete measures” are thus planned, in particular a help from France to Germany through gas deliveries, while Germany will support France to “secure its supply of electricity”, according to a declaration Municipality signed by Elisabeth Borne and Olaf Scholz.
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France has been, for the first time in forty-two years, clear importer of electricity, due to a level of production of nuclear electricity at the lowest. Since 1981, France had always been clear electricity exporter to its neighbors, in particular thanks to its nuclear power plants covering more than 60 % of its current production.
But since January, it has imported more electricity than it has exported, because almost half of its nuclear fleet is unavailable due to programmed but sometimes prolonged maintenance or corrosion problems.
Risk of cuts in January 2>
The level of supply should allow France to spend without problem the month of December, but for January, the risk of cuts exist in the event of very cold, if consumption does not drop.
The agreement signed with Berlin thus formalizes an effort already implemented since mid-November by Germany, which consists in “maximizing as much as possible the capacity for interconnection made available to the market”, according to the Text of the agreement.
In addition, Germany “undertakes to postpone the gradual exit from the remaining nuclear power plants until mid-April 2023 in order to provide additional volumes of electricity exchange to France”, as well as To “mobilize all market production and reserve capacities (…) to maximize electricity flows to France”.
For Germany too, the turning point is historic, because the country was very dependent on the gas from Russia and must diversify its supplies by turning west.
Since mid-October, France has commissioned a new export capacity to Germany “up to 100 GWh per day”, according to the agreement.
France has four fixed liquefied natural gas import terminals (LNG) while Germany does not have it, and it plans to have an additional floating methanier terminal in Le Havre “in winter 2023 -2024 “, recalls the agreement.
Germany also installs floating methanier terminals. Two will be delivered this winter to Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbütel, and three others, “by the end of 2023”.
“Advanceable support for Ukraine”
At a press conference with the German Chancellor, the French Prime Minister also said:
“Since the first day of this brutal war, our two countries have provided unwavering support to Ukraine. (…) We have worked to a strong and common European reaction. We are, Mr. Chancellor, fully aligned: We will continue to do so. We will support Ukraine to the end of this conflict. “
The German Chancellor has judged that “the policy of terror by the bombs of Russia against civil infrastructure in Ukraine must end”. “Russia must put an end to this war and withdraw its troops, immediately,” he added, adding that Germany and France were working to help Ukraine “to rebuild its energy infrastructure”, partly destroyed.
Almost half of the residents of kyiv were still deprived of electricity on Friday, while temperatures are winter, two days after Russian strikes having once again targeted essential infrastructure.