Electricity prices: industrial pressure on EDF

It's been more than a year since EDF and these "energy-intensive" industrialists have been negotiating step by step but, for several months, exchanges have been slipping, according to Nicolas de Warren, president of Uniden, during an interview at the 'AFP.

This association represents 36 energy-intensive manufacturers, accounting for more than 70% of the industrial energy consumed in France, in different sectors.

“There has been progress (...) in structuring,” he declared, but today, two months after the last meeting at the Ministry of Industry, “things are not moving forward” .

Questioned by AFP, EDF did not react immediately.

Electro-intensive industrialists have so far benefited from a preferential rate for access to nuclear electricity, says Arenh, which will disappear at the end of 2025.

For the future, EDF, affected by a colossal debt and faced with a wall of investments to build new reactors, offers its very large customers long-term contracts, at rates that the electrician considers preferential, in exchange for participation in EDF's past investments in its existing nuclear fleet, nuclear production allocation contracts (CAPN).

Among the main stumbling blocks is the definition of the production cost, with EDF including a share of financing for the nuclear future which increases it "quite significantly" compared to the calculations of the energy regulatory commission. (CRE), policeman of the sector, underlined Mr. de Warren.

Another point of tension, "the degree of exposure to the risks of operating the nuclear fleet" and to the variability of its production, depending on technical or economic hazards, added Mr. De Warren.

According to him, Uniden members are ready to take on “part of this risk”.

“Our only compass remains competitiveness and long-term visibility, and today, we have neither in the current state of the proposals that have been made to us,” concludes Mr. De Warren. At this stage, EDF has signed 5 contracts with very energy-intensive companies, for a total of 10 TWh.

This position taken by energy-intensive industrialists comes the day after the presentation of a senatorial report, which advocates a "targeted reduction in taxation" on electricity prices to protect consumers.

The text also proposes the establishment of contracts for difference (CFD) with, depending on the market price level, a guaranteed price or on the contrary a payment of the surplus to the State, a system that Uniden sees as a good thing. eye to supplement the electricity supplies of its members.