While welcoming the “new course” set by the law of energy transition, in which ambitious targets have been “reaffirmed and strengthened” by Nicolas Hulot in his climate plan, the president of the CRE wished to emphasize the fiscal control of the energy transition. Its success resides in its ability to control its cost, which requires us to ensure the effectiveness of our action and to ensure control over the budget in the long term. “
He took the opportunity to denounce : “the creation of the awards with an absurd system “.
“We will not succeed the energy transition with negative prices on the market, even if this system is part of our traditions “, he warned.
Asserting that ” the energy transition is a real opportunity for the French industry “, the former prefect of the Ile-de-France and Paris observes that
“driving innovation is to understand and anticipate the upheavals faced by the energy sector. “
Hence his initiative to create ” a Committee of forward-looking with a mission of a societal nature which will bring together all stakeholders to bring a word collective, or, at least, of the questions shared. “
Law of programming to 25/30 years
On the financial plan and finally, ” the way in which we will conduct [the energy transition] will determine our lives, and future, but also the situation of our public finances “, he recalls.
Regretting that he ” doesn’t really exist as a formal process of evaluation and budgetary control of our commitments in the very long term “, it considers that ” given the considerable financial implications, it should not be possible that the executive decision without the Parliament’s financial trajectory so that it goes beyond the horizons of successive terms.”
He said he was so ” conducive to the integration of all of the charges of public service in a law programming at 25/30 years binding expenditure ceiling and subject to revision every two years. “
This would set ” an envelope within which the executives would, of course, encouraged to make the economic choices the most effective. “
10 years of unnecessary procedures
While relativizing the French expenditure in the field of renewable energies : “8 billion euros, against 23 in Germany “, with a consumption of ” 1.6% of pv and 4% to wind energy “, Jean-François Carenco recalled that ” the search for efficiency and the ecological urgency to justify making a priority to focus our development effort on the channels best suited to enable us to achieve our objectives quickly and at reasonable cost “. Noting a ratio of 1 to 4 between the subsidy granted per kWh pv, and that provided to the projects under development off the coasts of france, however, he acknowledged that offshore wind ” remains a future-proof solution “, but observed that “the competition is worthy of consideration in the allocation of projects, and that” the State must play its role to limit as much as possible the risk of action. “
In effect, ” everyone knows that half of the additional cost is due to 10 years of unnecessary procedures. “As the regret regularly the actors of the offshore wind turbines and their representatives (including the Union of renewable energies), when all the permits are granted and the project purged of any appeal, the technologies have become obsolete. But there is no question to adapt the project to the technological advances that have occurred in the meantime. It would have to start from scratch. Rather than the tender, Jean-François Carenco, therefore, suggests ” analyses on a case-by-case basis, open book, inspired by the procedures in force in the areas not interconnected, which allow revisions of the ex post costs. “
Tendering for all the sub-sectors mature
Jean-François Carenco recalled at this occasion that the CRE was in favour of tendering for all the sub-sectors mature “, including onshore wind farms of over 6 MWh or the injection of biomethane into the network, suggesting for the solar include criteria for ” focus of technical national and european “. He, however, takes care to specify that
“the market for equipment manufacturers is global “, and that ” no sector national industrial not be able to emerge if their performances are inferior to those of its sector in Europe. “
In all cases, these calls for tenders will have to register ” in a multi-year framework in order to ensure the stability and visibility of the energy policy. “In the eyes of the former prefect, the difficulty of some of the projects to be realized is less of the competitive pressure that” difficulties in obtaining administrative permissions. “It is for this reason that the government and the Parliament are committed to simplify as much as possible the procedures. But Jean-François Caraco warns, recalling the good old adage :
“There is nothing more complex than to simplify. “
He cites, however, the recipes used abroad ” administrative desk unique, limited opportunities to appeal on the building permit or the ability of the selected projects having obtained all the administrative authorizations, to expropriation for public utility. “
Stop nominating crackpots and conservatism
Not question to question the devices such as performance guarantees ” to effectively exclude the nominations fanciful “. And be careful not to shake up ” the balance between the developments of renewable energies and the environment “, which ” must take into account the differences in sensitivity of citizens, territories and States. “
However, the president of the CRE does not hesitate to castigate those who, ” under the guise of environment, hinder the energy transition.”
“Denounce with force the ideologies, selfishness, and the pure conservatism of some opponents. “
In conclusion of his speech, Jean-François Carenco has announced that its initiative, ” for the first time this year, the CRE will publish, simultaneously with its deliberation on the charges of public service for the coming year an estimate of the financial trajectory multi-year, taking into account, year by year, the amounts already committed to.”
