The Government has decided to strip the draft law on “energy sovereignty” of any objectives regarding climate and energy choice, ensuring that it wants to “take more time” for debate at a time when Bruno Le Maire assumes power. Energy portfolio. While working on the text, submitted for consultation at the beginning of January, representatives of elected officials, NGOs, unions, businessmen, etc. They were informed on Wednesday of these disturbances, which aroused incomprehension and consternation, especially among environmental associations.
From now on, the project, which was to set the course for France to move away from fossil fuels, is deprived of its Title I dedicated to energy programming. There remain the aspects of price regulation, consumer protection and the hydroelectric dam regime.
Bercy did not immediately specify whether this aspect would appear in another bill or if it would enter the regulatory process.
Objectives in less attractive terms than current ones.
The topic: what energies for France between now and 2030 and 2035, what objectives for reducing energy consumption, etc. – has been the subject of multi-party working group meetings since May 2023 under the auspices of the previous ministry. Then came this draft bill, made public on January 8 and which, now simplified, must be presented at the beginning of February to the Council of Ministers.
The text had caused several energy actors to jump due to the absence of quantified objectives for renewable electrical energy (solar, wind), until now included in the law. On the other hand, he set precise objectives for nuclear energy, a priority for President Emmanuel Macron and for Bruno Le Maire, responsible for Energy since last Thursday’s reorganization. It also set new greenhouse gas reduction and energy saving targets for France, under less binding conditions than the current ones (with a text that commits to “moving towards” these targets).
Bruno Le Maire confirms that his priority is to accelerate “the climate transition”
None of this appears anymore in this “reforming referral to the bill on energy sovereignty”, which now bears the letterhead of the Ministry of Economy. “NGOs are devastated by this first concrete effect of the transfer of the Ministry of Energy Transition to Bercy,” reacted Anne Bringault, of the Climate Action Network (RAC), member of the National Council for the Ecological Transition (CNTE), necessarily consulted during this type of project.
This decision “raises fears of a pure and simple disappearance of the parliamentary debate on the course proposed by the Government for the ecological transition,” several organizations (RAC, FNE, WWF, CFDT, LPO, Humanity and Biodiversity) reacted in a joint statement. release. Sandrine Bélier, from Humanity and Biodiversity, another member of the CNTE, denounces “the lack of explanation and the lack of respect for the work already done.” “We asked to be received by the Prime Minister, to learn about his commitments to accelerate the ecological and energy transition.”
Questioned in the National Assembly by environmentalist deputy Julie Laernoes, Bruno Le Maire however assured that his priority was to accelerate “the climate transition”, citing “sobriety”, “energy efficiency”, “renewable energies, wind energy, photovoltaic panels and geothermal energy”. , heat pumps” and “the construction of six new nuclear reactors.”
Source: BFM TV
