The Franco-German relationship in the energy transitionThe Franco-German relationship in the energy transition

Résumé du document

The close relationship between France and Germany on the energy plan began after World War II with the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). It was an international organization which purpose was to unify European countries after the war.

Thereby the Franco-German relationship has been the engine of the European project driven by various official meetings, many consultations, common institutions and others diplomatic actions. But this relationship depends heavily on close links at the very top between the different leaders. We all remember the famous couples such as de Gaulle and Adenauer, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and Helmut Schmidt, François Mitterrand and Helmut Khol, Jacques Chirac and Gerhard Schroëder and finally Nicolas Sarkozy and Chancellor Angela Merkel.1

Furthermore, after the 1973's oil shock, France decided to launch an important nuclear power plant building program. Nuclear energy would not change oil dependency but would offer other alternative energies which will influence the world. Nevertheless since the years 2000 the aspect of the energetic sector is changing with the advent of the renewables energies and consideration about the impact of our lifestyle in the context of sustainable development. In 2010, Germany decided to grant these a better place and to promote energetic efficiency. This choice has been accelerated by the disaster of Fukushima in 2011 with the decision to renounce progressively to nuclear energy.2 Angela Merkel calls this U-turn the “Energiewende'' known as the energy transition in English. The Fukushima disaster changes the world way's mind concerning nuclear energy. It has revived the debate over the use of nuclear power in many countries of the Union.

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[...] This caused the automatic shutdown of reactors. Debris brought by the tsunami have clogged the water intake which caused the cessation of cooling relief. This cooling failure caused the partial fusion of the core in three reactors at the plant. There were about 7,000 dead, several kinds of diseases as defects, cancer . Critics denounce this danger but also its costly system: the installation of a nuclear power plant requires huge and expensive precautions, and it is impossible to be sure of absolute security. [...]

[...] The creation of a large department by the merger of two historically distinct functions, Ecology and equipment was determined by the former President Nicolas Sarkozy. Its purpose is to create a larger department, appoint a Minister of State, and respected Nicolas Hulot's ecological pact which stipulated the creation of a post of "Deputy Prime Minister of Sustainable Development. Under the government of François Fillon, it was renamed "Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing". Since May 2012, under the presidency of François Hollande, the energy returns to the duties of the ministry and becomes «Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy." In contrast, housing is assigned to a separate department. [...]

[...] The standards ensure suitability for use of products and the reduction of its environmental impacts throughout its life cycle. Founded in 199150, NF environment is the French Eco-label, delivered by AFNOR Certification. Its aim is to certify the conformity of the products at the requirements defined. It deals with the environmental quality of the products. The NF Environment brand wants to certify that products on which it is affix present a low negative impact on the environment compared with others products. It permits to discern products more friendly environment. [...]

[...] Germany seems to be an example for France, but Germans could also learn from French in certain purview as storage, network development or the capacity mechanism52. This is already a reality; companies like Air Liquide, Siemens, or Altsom, already have projects of binational partnership. For instance, Franco-german markets represent 30% of the Air Liquide sales which is mainly based on vehicles powering by liquid Hydrogen produced by renewable energy. Moreover, Alstom contributes to the connection of 10% of the off-shore wind turbines in Germany. [...]

[...] Farmers want to protect their environment in order to protect their jobs and resources. There are many projects and positive results: - Established in 2007 an oil rapeseed fuel that can power diesel engines of tractors, as well as cattle meal. - The establishment of a network of heat. Boilers fired with local wood used to heat 4,500 of public and private buildings. - They also work on a collaborative project of wind farms with a total capacity of 25 megawatts and a set of 35 new housing does not generate energy costs for residents. [...]