Illustration: China Dialogue
By Patryk Krych | The World Daily | JANUARY 27th 2021
On Wednesday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) had, in a joint report with grid operator RTE, stated that France will require more sustainable energy solutions if it is to reach its own set goals of total net neutrality by 2050. Thus far, the efforts of the country won’t be quite enough, unless other solutions are put to practice.
Since the return of the US into the Paris Climate Accords, countries have been scrambling to set clearer goals, and public focus has seen a significant shift towards judging what will come next in a supposed new era dedicated to battling climate change in all its forms. Among these concerns is one presented towards France – the country in which the famed Climate Accords had been made and signed for in the first place.
The Paris Accords were signed for and officialised back in 2015. It was only in 2017 when the US left the accords on account of the Trump Administration. With the US back in the accords, France is stepping up its game as well. The IEA detailed that more renewable energies ought to be put to use in France, specifically stating that the appropriate supply of power can be guaranteed via the use of solar and wind power.
They specified that it’s possible for supply demand to be met with these energies, but it will require some development of demand management as well as flexibility of that development. Energy storage, as well as the use of power plants throughout peak hours will also be necessary factors for this target to be met. If it’s all for the sake of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, it’s considered a worthwhile effort.
They added that for the goal to be met, a combination of an increased usage of biomass along with the implementation of energy efficiency and carbon neutral supply will be absolutely necessary. All these efforts and factors combined ought to make it more than possible for France to reach net zero by 2050.
Thanks in large part to its vast productions of nuclear energy, the country of France is already operating on a low-carbon output. In fact, out of all the countries aiming for net zero, it’s among the least that needs to be worried about. However, for the country to reach net zero at all, the nuclear power suppliers will need to be entirely eliminated before 2050, so alternative, renewable solutions need to be considered now.
By next year, the results of a new study being opened only now by the RTE are expected to come in. This study will look over the possibility of a 2050 society that uses nuclear energy, against one that uses no nuclear energy at all to make considerations for whether such energy has a place in a net zero society.
