France already operates its coal plants
Due to a lack of sufficient nuclear and wind power generation, France has started running its coal-fired power stations in recent weeks. At issue: the lack of wind and new technical damage at EDF, which also suffers from congestion in maintenance operations and a shift in its work schedule linked to Covid-19.
Echoes Sep 18, 2020
If the coronavirus crisis, and especially the containment measures, caused a drastic drop in CO2 emissions in the spring, other effects today clearly offset this good news for the climate. According to data published by the operator of the electricity transmission network RTE, France has turned on its coal-fired power stations in recent weeks. This Thursday, September 17, they provided 2% of the national electricity mix, or 824 megawatts, at midday.
Admittedly, this figure is modest in proportion to French consumption but it remains nonetheless striking, in the middle of September, when the temperatures are abnormally high and the radiators are not yet on. Indeed, these plants - the number of which is limited to four in France - are most often mobilized in the heart of winter to cope with peaks in electricity consumption.
Electricity prices on the rise
Above all, this early recourse to coal does not seem sufficient to meet the country's electricity needs. According to RTE, “load shedding” measures - that is to say the postponement of consumption by companies that agree to postpone or moderate them for remuneration - have been used in recent days to reduce consumption.
France has, moreover, been a global importer of electricity in recent days. These imports come mainly from Germany where electricity production generates more CO2 emissions than in France. A context that drives electricity prices up: Monday, September 14, they reached a peak of 120,62 euros, in France, at the end of the day.
New technical damage
At issue: the very low availability of EDF's fleet of nuclear reactors. Of its 56 reactors, 24 are currently shut down. The causes are multiple, and go well beyond the closure of Fessenheim.
At Chooz (Ardennes), the two EDF reactors are being shut down because of their potential impact on the flow of the Meuse, which is already limited due to the weather. At Cattenom, Penly, Blayais, Flamanville, Bugey and Paluel, maintenance programs have been extended on one or more reactors due to new technical damage. Finally, two reactors are targeted by fuel saving measures intended to cope with a tense winter due to the postponement of maintenance work in the midst of a health crisis.
Very weak winds in Europe
"The concomitance of this context with the large refit [the program which aims to extend the life of EDF nuclear reactors, Editor's note] creates a traffic jam of maintenance operations", confirms EDF. Added to this is the closure of the Fessenheim plant. Completed in June, this mechanically removed two reactors from the French electricity grid.
Nuclear power is not the only one responsible for this phenomenon, however. In Europe, the weather is also playing against green energies and in particular wind power. "An anticyclone has spread over Europe and is causing very light winds," says RTE. Last week wind power thus supplied 2% of the French electricity mix.
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