The government continues to try to reassure the French population. The objective of “spending the winter without difficulty and without cuts is within our reach”, assured this Friday the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire, during a visit to the Penly nuclear power plant (Seine-Maritime) alongside the new CEO of EDF Luc Rémont.
“We approach the coming weeks with confidence, with the passage of winter,” said Luc Rémont, whose number one priority, set by the executive, is to pilot the relaunch of nuclear electricity production in France. . EDF is “totally mobilized to face the challenges of the short term as well as the medium term”, underlined the new boss of the group.
“Let’s stop saying that it’s a disaster”
EDF has just put three additional reactors back into service, bringing the number of reactors connected to the grid to 40 and the nuclear power in service to 39 gigawatts. Sixteen reactors are still shut down for scheduled maintenance or corrosion problems.
“We are in the right direction. Let’s stop saying that it’s a disaster, it’s not true, ”welcomed Bruno Le Maire. Dressed in a navy blue and orange electrician’s vest, Luc Rémont spoke for the first time since taking office on November 23. Flanked by the Minister in a turtleneck, he spoke in front of dozens of employees, at the foot of the steam turbines of a huge engine room. There is “a lot of work”, launched the new CEO.
The purpose of nuclear energy
“Energy has returned to center stage for a year,” he observed, referring to the geopolitical situation. And “circumstances meant that, in the same year, we were faced with a major industrial challenge,” he continued. Bruno Le Maire has also sent a signal to employees, worried that the ongoing renationalization of the group is the prelude to a possible dismantling of the company.
“Hercules is abandoned, let’s be clear,” assured the minister, referring to this plan to separate the group’s activities into three entities, nuclear, hydroelectric and renewable energies, which was opposed by the unions. Confirming the executive’s desire to build six new EPR reactors, the Minister recalled the objective of the first one entering service in 2035, adding however: “if it’s 2034, it’s better”. “All nations in Europe will one day return to nuclear power,” he also predicted.