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In 2010, Nicolas Sarkozy signed a law to liberalize the market due to pressure from the European Commission, which threatened France with a €20 billion fine for unfair competition because of its low electricity prices. As a result, an artificial market was created with 125 alternative suppliers. This has led to EDF accumulating €64 billion in debt. The speaker argues that this system is unsustainable, as the main competitor sells its production at the same price to all its rivals without going bankrupt. They suggest removing these alternative suppliers to stop the increasing costs for consumers.

The speaker explains that the electricity market in Europe has favored the German system, which relies on gas, and disadvantaged the French system. This was not initially noticeable because gas prices were low. However, with the war in Ukraine and sanctions, gas prices started to rise. The speaker also mentions that the Americans wanted to promote their more expensive shale gas, which further contributed to the price increase. As a result, the French, who primarily rely on cheap nuclear energy, are now facing higher electricity prices and are stuck in this situation.

The speakers discuss the importance of successfully transitioning to clean energy and the need for strong decisions. They mention the plan to reduce nuclear power to 50% by 2035, which would involve closing 14 reactors. The first speaker confirms the government's intention to fully own EDF, which would help the company carry out ambitious projects. The second speaker believes that having 50% nuclear power is not a security issue and highlights that France is the only country with 72% of its electricity coming from nuclear sources.

The increase in prices is due to the fact that electricity prices are currently linked to gas prices. France is working at the European level to ensure that electricity prices are no longer dependent on gas prices. However, it is important to note that the surge in electricity prices in September and October was not solely because of the gas prices, but also because of the fear of a potential electricity supply shortage. This fear led consumers to be willing to pay more to ensure they wouldn't experience any power cuts. This situation is also related to the state of France's nuclear power plants and the efforts made to prepare for winter and lower prices, which are now showing positive results.

Speaker 0 notes that the energy solutions list for energy-hungry data centers was short and contained one thing: gas. They ask why not gas and renewables. Speaker 1 responds: "the what one has to appreciate is the intensity of energy." As an engineer, they state: "the mix of energy doesn't matter. How much is wind? How much solar? We like to advertise that. Kilohounces matter because energy intensity has to shift, not the mix." They argue that solar power cannot produce cement or steel and that "they are very energy intensive." Therefore, "you still need a gas based heating or" (implying gas is necessary). They add: "Physics. It's against physics. Fine. Absolutely. Physics don't allow do it." They emphasize evaluating energy mix changes in the context of "jewels of energy," noting the world still needs to progress and must build infrastructure—steel, cement, fuels. The challenge is how to change the energy mix while also building data centers and consuming more energy. They describe the current problem as "single threaded with the gas fired power plant, maybe a little bit of nuclear. Nuclear? Renewable remain in the mix, cannot bring the amount of jewels we need to produce this infrastructure which is required in the world."

The French government is in a battle with Germany over their differing energy models. France relies on nuclear power, while Germany promotes intermittent renewable energy sources like wind and solar, coupled with gas and coal. France wants nuclear power to be included in the EU's renewable energy objectives, but Germany is actively discriminating against it. German-funded foundations and NGOs are working to undermine the French nuclear industry. France has been slow to recognize Germany's determination, but recently formed an alliance with 16 countries to promote nuclear power in Europe. However, there is still a lack of understanding in France about the ongoing energy war between the two countries.

EDF, the cheapest energy provider in Europe, has successfully met all challenges and achieved a remarkable advantage in greenhouse gas emissions. However, there was a need to establish a market price, even though there was no market. This price was based on gas, despite not using it, because Germany does. The obsession for the past thirty years has been to dismantle EDF, and they have succeeded. The absurdity of selling one's own production to virtual competitors with no production obligations is surreal. EDF has few competitors, mainly some scattered wind turbines and solar fields, which is laughable.

There will be no privatization of EDF and Gaz de France. It is clear and straightforward. EDF and Gaz de France need to be able to compete on equal terms with their competitors.

Wir haben einen europäischen Binnenmarkt, in dem Strom über Grenzen fließt, wo es günstiger ist. Deutschland importiert zwei Prozent seines Stroms, hauptsächlich aus skandinavischen Ländern, wobei 25 Prozent davon Atomstrom aus Frankreich stammt. Diese Abhängigkeit ist minimal, da wir große Kapazitäten fossiler Kraftwerke haben, die nicht genutzt werden. Die niedrige Kohleverstromung liegt an der reduzierten Nachfrage. Die Strategie, erneuerbare Energien zu fördern und fossile Brennstoffe schrittweise durch Wasserstoff zu ersetzen, funktioniert. Frankreichs EDF subventioniert Strompreise, hat jedoch hohe Schulden und muss viele Atomkraftwerke renovieren, was teuer ist. Neue Atomkraftwerke in England sind ebenfalls extrem kostspielig. Ökonomisch ist die Situation fragwürdig, da der französische Staat für EDF haftet und Deutschland einen Ausgleichsmechanismus fordern sollte. --- We have a European internal market where electricity flows across borders to where it's cheaper. Germany imports two percent of its electricity, mainly from Scandinavian countries, with 25 percent coming from French nuclear power. This dependency is minimal, as we have large fossil fuel capacities that are underutilized. Low coal generation is due to reduced demand. The strategy of promoting renewables and gradually replacing fossil fuels with hydrogen is working. France's EDF subsidizes electricity prices but has high debts and must renovate many nuclear plants, which is costly. New nuclear plants in England are also extremely expensive. Economically, the situation is questionable, as the French state guarantees EDF, and Germany should demand a compensation mechanism.

Europeans were buying more Russian oil and gas than they were giving in aid to Ukraine, essentially funding both sides of the war. Germany will become totally dependent on Russian energy if it does not immediately change course. It's very sad that Germany makes massive oil and gas deals with Russia, paying billions of dollars a year to them. Many countries make pipeline deals with Russia, paying billions into their coffers while we're supposed to protect them against Russia. The former chancellor of Germany even heads the pipeline company supplying the gas. Germany will have almost 70% of their country controlled by Russia with natural gas. Germany is a captive of Russia because they get so much of their energy from them. They got rid of their coal plants and nuclear. NATO needs to address this.

We are not in trouble because of a lack of energy or amateurs. We need to talk about things. These people are great, but they are inexperienced. Macron has been here for 6 years and didn't think about all this before. We are dependent now, whereas France used to be a leader in electricity. We had the strongest nuclear potential in the world and could export electricity. But now we are begging because we followed Germany's lead. This is not Europe, it's German Europe. The Franco-German relationship is a disaster for France. We need to break free from this imperialism.

We are in a serious situation that is harming the country's interests. Last week, there was a power outage, and the losses for EDF can be estimated. The RTE report shows the electricity production, consumption, and exports. Due to reactor shutdowns, EDF should have earned €22 billion. Additionally, EDF is obligated to sell electricity to competitors at €42 per megawatt-hour, resulting in a loss of €28 billion. EDF is also required to buy wind-generated electricity at €91 per megawatt-hour but cannot resell it, costing the state €7 billion. In total, the losses amount to €57 billion. If everything had gone perfectly, EDF would have earned €40 billion last year.

Nuclear energy is non-polluting, cheaper, and secure. However, France has gradually abandoned it due to ideology, cowardice, and incompetence. This decision has led to half of the reactors being shut down, the closure of Fessenheim, and a lack of investment in nuclear power. As a result, we now face restrictions, shortages, and price increases. The decline of nuclear power in France reflects the poor choices made by our leaders. Like education, healthcare, justice, and the police, anything touched by the government is deficient or on the verge of collapse. This country is declassified, deindustrialized, and lacking in substance. The younger generation feels a mix of discomfort, anger, and sadness. In short, France is like a slowly sinking Titanic, unless someone takes action.

Due to the destruction and limited availability of our nuclear reactors, we are now forced to import a significant amount of electricity from Germany, specifically coal-based electricity. This has negatively impacted our industrial competitiveness, trade deficit, and energy sovereignty. I urge President Macron to take action and call on intelligence authorities to investigate the actions of this organization. Additionally, our police and justice system should investigate the presence of these lobbyists within our institutions. The Astrid project, which aimed to promote nuclear energy in France, was abandoned despite already spending 1.6 billion euros. Bill Gates has taken over the project, receiving billions of dollars from the US Department of Energy to develop a fast neutron reactor that can consume nuclear waste. This technology could have provided 1,000 to 2,000 years of energy sovereignty and was far more powerful than current nuclear plants.

The price of gas and electricity in Europe has skyrocketed due to sanctions against Russia and the dependence on gas power plants. Private electricity providers in France are forced to buy expensive property titles on the European market to maintain their customer base, resulting in higher electricity bills. Unregulated private providers are putting millions of French citizens in financial trouble. This situation benefits financial giants at the expense of the real economy. Some companies, like Hyberdrola, have even asked their customers to switch to EDF to avoid purchasing electricity on the market. As more people turn to EDF for regulated tariffs, the company will have to share its electricity with a larger customer base. However, due to a lack of investment in power plants and renewable energy, EDF's production is decreasing while the number of customers is increasing, leading to a shortage of electricity.

In 2007, alternative electricity providers emerged, sourcing their energy from European exchanges. However, they were not growing fast enough. In 2011, a mechanism called "l'arène" was implemented, forcing EDF to sell a quarter of its nuclear energy at a price lower than its production cost. This created an asymmetry where EDF takes investment risks while subsidizing its competitors. In 2022, the government demanded that EDF increase its nuclear electricity volume to contain tariff hikes. However, the promised 20 terawatt-hours were already sold, forcing EDF to buy its own electricity at a higher market price and resell it to competitors at a much lower price. This situation has not benefited EDF, consumers, or the energy transition. Many suppliers have suspended their offers, gone bankrupt, or ceased operations due to soaring electricity and gas prices. The French struggle to understand these price increases as electricity in France is mainly nuclear-based. They feel imposed upon by European rules and false competition, which results in energy prices from countries that have failed in their energy policies.

EDF produces 80% of the electricity in France, and their winter production is almost sufficient. There is no need to buy electricity from intermediaries or the market. The government's decision to maintain these laws is creating a major energy crisis in France. We could have been one of the few European countries to withstand sanctions, but now we might sink like the others. The solution is to reestablish EDF's monopoly so that everyone buys electricity directly from them. This should have been done years ago, especially when sanctions were imposed on Russia. The government's failure to anticipate the price surge proves their incompetence in managing our interests. They cannot blame Putin; it is their fault.

**German Summary:** Seit der Abschaltung der letzten drei Kernkraftwerke importiert Deutschland Strom, da die Eigenversorgung nicht mehr gewährleistet ist. Erneuerbare Energien decken nachts oft nur ein Viertel des Bedarfs, was zu Importen führt. Tagsüber, bei starker Sonneneinstrahlung, exportiert Deutschland überschüssigen Photovoltaikstrom teils zu negativen Preisen. Nachts muss teurer Strom importiert werden, was zu hohen Strompreisen führt. Dies führt zu einer Situation, in der tagsüber billiger Strom exportiert und nachts teuer importiert wird. Die deutsche Energiewende ist kein Vorbild, da sie auf Importe aus Ländern mit stabiler Stromversorgung angewiesen ist. **English Translation:** Since the shutdown of the last three nuclear power plants, Germany has been importing electricity because it can no longer guarantee its own supply. Renewable energies often only cover a quarter of the demand at night, leading to imports. During the day, with strong sunlight, Germany exports surplus photovoltaic electricity, sometimes at negative prices. At night, expensive electricity has to be imported, which leads to high electricity prices. This leads to a situation in which cheap electricity is exported during the day and expensive electricity is imported at night. The German energy transition is not a role model, as it relies on imports from countries with a stable power supply.

Technically, nothing changes in the electricity production and distribution process. The idea of private suppliers and property rights is just an accounting illusion that costs EDF over eight billion euros annually. This decision was made by the government to create a financial class of private electricity suppliers who profit without investing. In 2022, the government increased the electricity quota for EDF, forcing them to buy electricity they themselves produced at a higher price and sell it to private suppliers at a loss. This accounting operation cost EDF 28 billion euros, which could have been used for energy transition and maintenance. As a result, EDF is in a financial crisis, requiring regular capital injections from the government and neglecting nuclear plant maintenance. This has led to losing international contracts to the Russian state-owned company, Rosatom.

The speaker expresses concern over Germany's influence on France's energy sector, stating that due to the destruction of their nuclear reactors, France is now heavily reliant on importing coal-based electricity from Germany. This has negatively impacted France's industrial competitiveness, trade deficit, and energy sovereignty. The speaker calls for President Macron to take action and urges intelligence agencies, police, and the justice system to investigate the presence of lobbying groups within French institutions. The discussion also touches on the abandoned Astrid project, which aimed to promote nuclear energy in France, and mentions the connection between the anti-nuclear lobby and the wind turbine lobby. It is noted that Bill Gates has taken over the Astrid project, receiving funding from the US Department of Energy to develop a fast neutron reactor technology that could have been a technological advantage for France.

The French government is facing a technical issue with the number of nuclear power plants being shut down for maintenance, which threatens electricity production this winter. The government is holding secret meetings to prepare for the worst and is even considering bypassing nuclear regulations to ensure production. However, the problem is not just technical but also political. The lack of funding for building renovations and the neglect of old nuclear plants are political decisions that have contributed to the crisis. The government has been aware of the situation for eight years but has done nothing to address it. The energy deficit can be compensated by finding money, possibly from companies that have profited during the crisis. Other European countries have taxed energy companies' super profits, so why not France? Instead, the government is preparing for rationing and planning to lower electricity taxes using dividends from EDF, a company on the verge of bankruptcy that relies on billions of capital injections from the French government.

Due to the destruction and limited availability of our nuclear reactors, we are now forced to import a significant amount of electricity from German coal, which negatively impacts our industrial competitiveness, trade deficit, and energy sovereignty. I urge President Macron to take action and call on intelligence authorities to investigate the actions of this organization. Additionally, I ask the French police and justice system to look into the presence of these lobbies within our institutions. The Astrid project, which aimed to promote nuclear energy in France, was abandoned under pressure from Germany. It is worth noting that the anti-nuclear lobby and the wind turbine lobby are one and the same. Despite having already spent 1.6 billion euros on Astrid, the project was canceled by Emmanuel Macron, only to be taken up by Bill Gates, who received billions of dollars from the US Department of Energy to develop a fast neutron reactor capable of consuming nuclear waste. This technology, which we were 30 years ahead in, could have provided 1,000 to 2,000 years of energy sovereignty and had a power output 100 times greater than current nuclear power plants.

Germany should not only avoid shutting down nuclear power plants, but also reopen the ones that have already closed. This is a matter of national security and it is total madness to shut them down. Coal power plants, on the other hand, cause more deaths each year due to their emissions, making them far more dangerous than nuclear power. It's time to realize that playtime is over and take this issue seriously.

In France, the speaker explains that the country operates under a neoliberal system rather than a liberal one. They argue that when financiers cannot win through competition, the government intervenes to manipulate the market so that the financiers always come out on top. This is what will happen with EDF, as the state has mandated that EDF must sell 25% of its production to private suppliers at a cost price of €49 per megawatt-hour. This means that EDF will lose 25% of its profits, allowing private companies to add their margins and make a profit. However, these profits will not be used to maintain the nuclear power plants. The speaker questions why EDF didn't use its existing profits to invest in renewable energy instead. They argue that most of these private suppliers rely on the cheap electricity they obtain from EDF rather than investing in renewables themselves. The speaker clarifies that it is still EDF producing the electricity, but they issue fake ownership titles to private suppliers who then sell it back to consumers at a higher price.

In France, there are anti-nuclear organizations that question the benefits of nuclear power. However, it is clear that Germany is the main beneficiary of this situation. France had a significant economic advantage with its nuclear power, as it provided cheap electricity and a strong industrial sector. Nuclear power is stable and the cost of fuel is minimal compared to the overall production cost. The cost of construction, fuel cycle, including disposal, and decommissioning of nuclear plants are already included in the price of electricity. Despite this, French electricity remains the cheapest in Europe, about half the price of other countries.