Platt Nucleonics March 26
Platt Nucleonics March 26
Article by Chris Johnstone ‘EDF Chiefs Departure…’
EDF’s March 6 announcement that it was preparing to stage a first auction to sell around 10 TWh of power to European buyers starting in 2026 was “a last straw” for heavy French industrial power users, Paris-based energy consultant Denis Florin, founder of the Lavoisier Conseil consultancy, added in a March 24 interview. “The dismissal was not a total surprise, Remont was under heavy attack for the last two weeks” from big power users, Florin said.
The new nuclear power sales formula was flawed from the start, Florin added. “If you are signing long-term purchase agreements then you would expect severe discounts compared with the market price. The large industrial power users were never offered that,” he noted.
Remont’s decision to try and boost EDF’s power sales revenues outside France through auctions without the go-ahead of the government resulted in him paying the price, ****** and Florin said.
“Most people, even Luc Remont’s harshest critics, agree that he generally got the EPR2 project back on track,” Florin noted.
The industry veteran Fontana has significant nuclear sector experience. “He was put in charge to clean things up at Framatome” after that division was taken away from fuel cycle company Areva, now known as Orano, and has succeeded at this since 2016, said Florin. Moreover, he is likely, after Remont’s experience, to have learned the lesson not to challenge the government, Florin added.
“There are two main possibilities,” Florin said. “You can allow cheaper sales of power by restructuring EDF [possibly through the sale of some assets and debt reduction]. I don’t think that will happen because of the inherent power of EDF to safeguard its interests. The more likely possibility is reduced power prices for heavy users.”
One way of achieving this, Florin said, might be by establishing a contract for difference offer to such power customers, under which a strike price for power sales would be fixed, with EDF compensating customers if market prices are higher and being compensated itself by the state if prices are lower.
“A contract for difference could be the answer, though has not been mentioned,” said Florin.
Article by Chris Johnstone ‘EDF Chiefs Departure…’
EDF’s March 6 announcement that it was preparing to stage a first auction to sell around 10 TWh of power to European buyers starting in 2026 was “a last straw” for heavy French industrial power users, Paris-based energy consultant Denis Florin, founder of the Lavoisier Conseil consultancy, added in a March 24 interview. “The dismissal was not a total surprise, Remont was under heavy attack for the last two weeks” from big power users, Florin said.
The new nuclear power sales formula was flawed from the start, Florin added. “If you are signing long-term purchase agreements then you would expect severe discounts compared with the market price. The large industrial power users were never offered that,” he noted.
Remont’s decision to try and boost EDF’s power sales revenues outside France through auctions without the go-ahead of the government resulted in him paying the price, ****** and Florin said.
“Most people, even Luc Remont’s harshest critics, agree that he generally got the EPR2 project back on track,” Florin noted.
The industry veteran Fontana has significant nuclear sector experience. “He was put in charge to clean things up at Framatome” after that division was taken away from fuel cycle company Areva, now known as Orano, and has succeeded at this since 2016, said Florin. Moreover, he is likely, after Remont’s experience, to have learned the lesson not to challenge the government, Florin added.
“There are two main possibilities,” Florin said. “You can allow cheaper sales of power by restructuring EDF [possibly through the sale of some assets and debt reduction]. I don’t think that will happen because of the inherent power of EDF to safeguard its interests. The more likely possibility is reduced power prices for heavy users.”
One way of achieving this, Florin said, might be by establishing a contract for difference offer to such power customers, under which a strike price for power sales would be fixed, with EDF compensating customers if market prices are higher and being compensated itself by the state if prices are lower.
“A contract for difference could be the answer, though has not been mentioned,” said Florin.