Bruno Le Maire puts pressure on EDF

This Monday, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire attended the EDF Executive Committee, as he himself announced at the beginning of March. The minister was then upset by the potential increase in the cost of building six new EPR 2 nuclear reactors.EDF must learn to keep its prices and its schedule, he declared. On this Monday, the tone was intended to be more conciliatory. ” We have undertaken the largest industrial project in Europe for several decades with the construction of 6 new nuclear reactors. We want this new big project to be a success.”Bruno Le Maire commented soberly after the meeting.

It was the first time that the minister took part in the exercise, since the completion of its nationalization in June 2023, when the state is the sole shareholder of the electrician. For the government EDF is not a company like any other, it is above all. A policy tool. It faces challenges and infrastructure projects for the country’s economic future, including the extension of the existing fleet’s lifespan and the announcement of EPR 2. The Minister will likely attend other meetings in this format to share with all EDF managers. “EDF must mobilize all the necessary human and technical resources to carry out this industrial project within the stipulated cost and time frame. I extend all my support to the management and employees of EDF to carry out this programme. I will follow its project implementation very regularly with Joel Barre, the inter-ministerial representative for new nuclear energy.. »

Business transformation

The meeting was the occasion for a lengthy discussion between EDF managers and the minister about how the company was repositioning itself to meet the costs and deadlines of this major programme. The group established a construction department, which existed for the first major French nuclear program and which has since disappeared. The topic of maturing the design of future reactors was also discussed at length. It seems that it is not yet mature enough to start construction. Experience has shown that putting the cart before the horse at a nuclear site does not save time. The delay in Flamenville EPR proves it.

However, the detailed design should also make it possible to set a schedule for carrying out the program and hence its cost. We’ll probably have to wait at least until the fall for more details on these topics. In addition, the company’s commercial policy and the implementation of the post-Aarhain regulation with marketing of long-term contracts by EDF were also discussed. For the moment, the big companies are reluctant to commit, even though they believe the post-2025 electricity prices proposed by EDF are too high compared to current markets. ” EDF is committed to renegotiating the contracts of VSEs, SMEs, and ETIs that were signed when prices were highest. This is important for these companies. EDF implements it », the minister added. EDF’s CEO, Luc Raymont, announced the renegotiation during the release of his group’s annual results in mid-February.