2023-12-04 10:46:12
Emmanuel Macron was in Dubai for COP28 on December 1 and 2. In particular, he signed a declaration calling for tripling nuclear capacities globally by 2050, and called for an end to coal in all countries “as quickly as possible”.
The IPCC scenarios which make it possible to limit global warming to +1.5°C involve reducing the consumption of coal by 95%, oil by 60% and gas by 45% in 2050 compared to 2019. Traveling to COP28 in Dubai on December 1 and 2, Emmanuel Macron detailed the messages carried by France in terms of energy to have a chance of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. “The heart of the priority is that the countries that consume the most coal get out of it as quickly as possible”he said at a press conference.
Emmanuel Macron therefore calls on all G7 countries to set an example and get out of coal by 2030 (France will do so before 2027). The objective for France is to turn the page on oil “by 2040-2045” and that of gas in 2050. Emmanuel Macron calls for this “that all G20 countries do the same as quickly as possible” and to cut “gradually coal financing”. At the same time, it will be a question of helping emerging countries to do the same. To achieve this, France intends to concentrate its public aid on nuclear and renewable projects and “just energy transition” programs (Just Energy Transition Partnership – JETP). These partnerships launched with South Africa, Indonesia, Vietnam and Senegal since COP26 in Glasgow aim to help these countries with the energy transition and the exit from coal.
Triple nuclear capabilities by 2050
For France, phasing out coal and developing nuclear power go hand in hand. On December 2, 2023 at COP28, she signed a declaration, alongside 21 other countries, including the United States, the United Arab Emirates, and Japan, calling for tripling global nuclear production capacities by 2050 by compared to 2020. At the end of that year, installed nuclear capacity stood at 393 gigawatts (GW), according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Tripling nuclear production capacity by 2050 would therefore amount to reaching 1,179 GW by this horizon.
Emmanuel Macron is delighted. “This commitment and the goal of tripling nuclear energy by 2050 that we approve today send an extremely powerful message to the world: nuclear energy is back and is an essential solution to the fight against climate change. », assured Emmanuel Macron from the podium. The declaration calls on other countries to join them in this effort. China and Russia, the leading builders of nuclear reactors in the world today, however, did not sign the declaration.
Belgium, which has postponed its nuclear phase-out by ten years (from 2025 to 2035), will host the first summit on nuclear energy in Brussels on March 21 and 22, 2024, in partnership with the IAEA. The participation of around 30 countries, including France, is expected. ” For the first time, [cette rencontre] will bring governments, businesses, investors and sector regulators to the table to organize a coherent strategy to enable this tripling of nuclear power by 2050”welcomed Emmanuel Macron.
Greenpeace, for its part, denounces a vision “disconnected from reality”. “Between delays, additional costs and dependence on Russia, the nuclear industry is losing ground in the global energy mix every day and is being marginalized a little more in favor of renewable energies. Much less expensive, quick to deploy and accessible to developing countries, these energies have achieved consensus on the international scene.declares Pauline Boyer, Energy Transition campaign manager at Greenpeace France, in a press release.
Renewable energies and investments
The same day at COP28, France also committed, among 116 countries, to tripling its renewable energy (ENR) capacities by 2030. The objective: to reach 11,000 gigawatts, compared to around 3,400 today. today. “The right mix is energy efficiency, more renewables and more nuclear”defended Emmanuel Macron.
The Head of State intends to attack the remuneration of private banks to encourage the development of renewable energies and the cessation of financing of new coal-fired power stations. “If you are an investor, you pay the same interest rate for a coal project, a gas project or a renewable project”, regretted the president, suggesting the establishment of differentiated interest rates depending on the energies financed. The project of a “gold standard”, a sort of “financial classification of these types of investments”, must be led and implemented by the World Bank, said Emmanuel Macron.
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