To advance the transition, citizen energy

For countries that have chosen to get out of nuclear power or never enter it, the urgency of decarboning electricity production requires a more rapid development of renewables.In this case wind and photovoltaics.Indeed, these sources present both the largest deposits and realistic costs.In addition, their characteristics are such that both are necessary (a wind turbine can produce at night, not a solar panel).The field of constraints being clear, it is easier to build consensus, respond to oppositions and give yourself the means to implement a “regret” strategy.

French contradictions

Conversely, in a country like France, which set itself in 2015 to bring the share of nuclear power to 50 % in its electricity consumption, and implicitly to keep this proportion indefinitely, things are very complicated.If we are increasingly increasing renewables whose production is not controlled while keeping a lot of nuclear power plants, then these must reduce their production when there is sun and wind and they lose money.

If, conversely, we want to preserve nuclear production as much as possible, this implies increasing the renewables to stay with the objective of the 50 %, and therefore ultimately an overproduction of electricity.In this case, you must avoid saving energy too much (and continue to heat poorly insulated accommodation with convectors), or even hope that France wore its neighbors with its excess, a very illusory vision.

"In France, we've been in the" at the same time "for twenty years.At the same time nuclear, at the same time energy efficiency, at the same time renewable energies.It’s a speech full of contradictions.As a result, we say that we want to make renewables, while not really doing it, "sums up Andreas Rüdinger, a researcher associated with the IDDRI.

These contradictions largely explain why France has only reached 19 % renewable energy in its energy consumption in 2020, instead of the 23 % set at that date in the European framework.In 2030, hexagon targets 33 %, which called great efforts both on the side of demand for demand and energy supply.With regard to electricity production, multi -year energy programming (PPE) provides for this horizon a quadrupling of photovoltaics (mainly via power plants, whose costs are much lower than roofing facilities) andA 2.5 multiplication of wind turbines.

Coherence and determination

Such a deployment will not be easy.He first goes through a consistency of the electricity request trajectories and, opposite, of supply in each production sector.With the PPE, this point is almost acquired until 2030, but beyond, the vision is very vague, which is detrimental to investment decisions that need readability in the longer term.

Once the objectives are clearly defined, and this is the whole issue of prospective work by 2050 carried out by RTE (electricity transport network) and whose report is expected this fall, their implementation requires determinationconstant of the public authorities.It is too often lacking.This involves a facilitating framework.Today, for example, the constraints imposed by the army prohibits the establishment of wind turbines in a large part of the territory.And the methods of public support are such that the developers can only go to the most windy areas.The result is a concentration of wind turbines that ends up posing acceptability problems.

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In addition to an administrative framework allowing a better spatial distribution of projects, their acceptability also depends on their appropriation by the inhabitants and the communities.Especially since if the opposition to projects is today the result of a minority of people, it will no longer necessarily be the case tomorrow with wind turbines and more visible solar farms in the landscape.

Underdeveloped citizen projects

Also on this point, the rub.There are two major modes of involvement in France in France: citizen projects and projects with simple participation in financing.With the former, the decision, from design to the distribution of profits, is under the control of associations and communities that are on the initiative.The 220 projects labeled and supported by the Shared Energy Association thus correspond to specifications requiring governance and recourse to local providers.But although local economic benefits are much higher than for conventional projects, citizen projects represent in France a tiny part of the capacities installed1.They claim a lot of volunteer engagement, are smaller, less profitable ... but are also badly encouraged by public action.

Marion Richard, head of national animation with shared Energy, points in particular the call for tenders2.This mechanism was imposed in Europe from 2017 to allocate aid and replaced the principle of the single window which remains only for very low power facilities: “This competition of all actors, whatever theirSize and their objective, promotes large companies, which can offer the lowest selling prices for their electricity, observes Marion Richard.Should the minimization of public support be done at any price?»»

The narrowness of the one -stop shop thus limits the development of citizen projects.Other problems arise, such as the concentration of photovoltaic projects in the South, where they find profitability more easily.However, there is no shortage of candidates north of the Loire!However, the government has just raised the ceilings allowing a solar installation to benefit from the one -stop shop.This effort goes in the right direction, but remains shy.Especially compared to the ambition of shared energy: 15 % of the installed capacities controlled by local players in 2030 (against 42 % today in Germany).

Public support has however been important for "crowdfunding", in the form of a bonus allocated since 2015 to developers if 40 % of the investment comes from individuals or communities.Savings collected via crowdfunding platforms has increased tenfold, going from 11 million euros in 2016 to 102 million in 2020. Result, 36 % of the projects winning tenders had become "participative" in 2019.Participation which is actually limited to a savings placement in already completely curly projects."Even if the citizens obtain voting rights, they are only involved from the commissioning of the project, that is too late to really weigh on strategic choices," said Andreas Rüdinger.

Of course, not everyone is intended to act actively in the assembly of projects and the simple financial participation is a model that has its place.But, insists the researcher, this participation must be translated, as in the German cooperative model, by a real co -development of projects.What the major French actors in renewables do not want, with a very rare exceptions.Faced with rising oppositions on the ground, they may be obliged, if they want to see their projects emerging from the ground, to put a little water in their wine and to better share with local actors decision-making ... and profits.

Near Carcassonne, the Citizénde Luc-sur-Aude solar park produces, on a half hectare, almost as much electricity as the 250 inhabitants of this town consume. In the mid-2000s, companies had come in theCorner, in search of land for their photovoltaic projects, without too much concern for local needs.EDF wanted 30 hectares, otherwise nothing.The municipality did not follow up.In 2015, a call for tenders from the Region Pourdes Parcs Citoyenis Changela gave: for an invested citizen euro, a subsidy euro."The idea of making a park adjusted to our needs and financed by people from here we liked it," said Jean-Claude Pons, the mayor.

The first electron came out of the garrigue on December 1, 2018. The animation work by the municipality and the commitment of the project manager, the Sunfu Midi company, were keys to success.Also played the financial argument.The 100,000 euros in the region as well as the advantageous purchase rate (10 CTS/kWh) guaranteed by ENERCOOP, green electricity supplier, offer good profitability to this investment of 337,000 euros.Dividends announced are 5 %.Better than a booklet A, knowing that you can resell its shares easily, the town committing to buy them as a last resort.

Unfortunately, this type of initiative is difficult to reply.The levels of remuneration guaranteed in the context of tenders are generally insufficient for such small facilities, even their production costs are attractive (6 CTS/KWHà Luc-sur-Aude).These structures are also penalized by the costs of connection to the high network with regard to the volumes produced.

Near Carcassonne, the Citizénde Luc-sur-Aude solar park produces, on a half hectare, almost as much electricity as the 250 inhabitants of this town consume. In the mid-2000s, companies had come in theCorner, in search of land for their photovoltaic projects, without too much concern for local needs.EDF wanted 30 hectares, otherwise nothing.The municipality did not follow up.In 2015, a call for tenders from the Region Pourdes Parcs Citoyenis Changela gave: for an invested citizen euro, a subsidy euro."The idea of making a park adjusted to our needs and financed by people from here we liked it," said Jean-Claude Pons, the mayor.

The first electron came out of the garrigue on December 1, 2018. The animation work by the municipality and the commitment of the project manager, the Sunfu Midi company, were keys to success.Also played the financial argument.The 100,000 euros in the region as well as the advantageous purchase rate (10 CTS/kWh) guaranteed by ENERCOOP, green electricity supplier, offer good profitability to this investment of 337,000 euros.Dividends announced are 5 %.Better than a booklet A, knowing that you can resell its shares easily, the town committing to buy them as a last resort.

Unfortunately, this type of initiative is difficult to reply.The levels of remuneration guaranteed in the context of tenders are generally insufficient for such small facilities, even their production costs are attractive (6 CTS/KWHà Luc-sur-Aude).These structures are also penalized by the costs of connection to the high network with regard to the volumes produced.

This article is published in partnership with the Heinrich-Böll Stiftung Foundation.