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| Fig. 1: French electricity imports to various countries from 2015 to 2024. (Image Source: A. Woodrow, after Maguire. [3]) |
France relies heavily on nuclear power for electricity generation as well as exporting electricity across Europe. 336 TWh were generated by nuclear power in 2023, which is over 65% of France's energy share. [1,2] In 2023, France was Europe's second-largest electricity producer, second to Germany. [1] French exports of electricity reached an all-time high in 2024. [3] Because nuclear generation is such a large portion of the French electricity supply, nuclear generation in France plays a large role in electricity supply to many European countries.
France mainly exports electricity to the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland and Belgium. [3] Although France is typically a net exporter of electricity, net imports have risen by 14 TWh since 2015, largely due to the 2022 nuclear crisis, when 26 of the country's 56 reactors were shut down for maintenance issues. [1,4] Net imports in 2022 were around 5 times higher than the average of the past seven years and have fallen to almost 0 TWh in 2024. [3]
Exports have since recovered from the 2022 crisis. A majority of the electricity is exported to Italy, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. [3]
In 2024, France was the largest electricity supplier to Germany and the United Kingdom. Both countries achieved all-time high electricity imports in 2024. [3]
The electricity arrives in the UK through two interconnectors under the British Channel: IFA and IFA2. [5] IFA was opened in 1986 and has a 2 GW capacity, while IFA2 was opened in 2020 and has a 1 GW capacity. (BBC) The total possible energy transported to the UK from France in one year on average is
France exported about 20 TWh to the UK in 2024, so this calculation makes sense.
France's electricity exports are particularly important due to the Russian-Ukrainian War impacting gas imports. [2] The Nord Stream pipeline (Nord Stream 1) supplied Germany with natural gas from Russia from 2011-2022. [6] Nord Stream 2 never opened due to the impacts of the war. [6] The two pipelines combined would have had a capacity of 110 bcm per year. [6] This number equates to 3.96 × 1018 J/year of energy supplied to Germany and surrounding countries. In 2024, Germany imported around 15 TWh of French electricity, which equates to 5.4 × 1016 J/year. Germany relied heavily on the Nord Stream pipelines for energy, and with their shutdown, imported electricity from France has become increasingly important to meet demand.
Germany has the largest electricity demand in the EU, accounting for 19% requiring 515 TWh. [1] French electricity imports help keep up with this high demand. This trend is particularly interesting because nuclear generation in Germany stopped altogether in 2023 after the retirement of the last reactor. [1] However, the majority of electricity generated in France is through nuclear power. This electricity is then imported to Germany.
French electricity generation relies heavily on nuclear power, which makes up the majority of its electricity supply. French electricity exports have increased since 2015 with a dramatic increase after the 2022 power crisis. Two large European economies, Germany and the United Kingdom, have France as their primary electricity import source. These trends highlight the key role nuclear energy generation in France plays in keeping up with the electricity demand across Europe.
© Audrey Woodrow. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] "European Electricity Review 2024," Ember Energy, 2024.
[2] G. Maguire, "France's Clean Power Clout to Be Tested Again This Winter," Reuters, 8 Nov 23.
[3] G. Maguire, "France in Focus as Europe's Electricity Import Needs Swell," Reuters, 4 Feb 25.
[4] R. Nemawarkar, "The Impact of the French 2022 Nuclear Power Crisis on Nuclear Production," Physics 241, Stanford University, Fall 2024.
[5] "Cross-Channel Electricity Link Begins Full Flow," BBC, 22 Jan 21.
[6] P. Belkin, M. Ratner and C. Welt, "Russia's Nord Stream 2 Natural Gas Pipeline to Germany Halted," Congressional Research Service, IF11138 March 2022.