A law without energy - Volt deplores the lack of ambition of the law to accelerate the production of renewable energy
A law without energy - Volt deplores the lack of ambition of the law to accelerate the production of renewable energy
> 🌱 Against the backdrop of the climate emergency and the energy crisis, the massive and rapid deployment of renewable energies (RE) is an essential pillar of the transition and energy security in France and Europe
> 🏛️ The law to accelerate the production of renewable energy (link) is a start, but the law still puts the brakes on the democratic co-construction of projects with the territories. The State must launch democratic regional consultation cycles within the territories by 2025.
> 👷 Acceleration measures must be coupled with a real green industrial policy for the benefit of the territories.
The ENR acceleration law proposes a territorial planning mechanism for renewable energies to facilitate local approval of projects and ensure their better balance in the territories. However, the law is inadequate both in its ambition and in its analysis of the basic problem.
Depending on the type of RES, the reasons for the long deployment times are different. In offshore wind, the main obstacles are the lack of anticipation on the part of the State in the provision of electrical connections. In onshore renewable energies (onshore wind, solar), the obstacles are due to a lack of state staff to evaluate projects and to the enormous lack of acceptability of renewable energies in the territories. The inconsistencies of the projects in the territories (visual impact, environmental hazards, lack of consultation) are at the origin of a growing resistance to these projects.
Politically, these obstacles must be removed so that renewable energies are no longer a political battleground. As the referral to the Constitutional Council by a group of Republican and National Rally MPs proves, political parties will try to take advantage of the lack of acceptability in the territories to jeopardise renewable energy, which is necessary for our energy security and the protection of our climate.
The major challenge is therefore to combine acceptability, territorial anchoring and accelerated deployment of renewable energies. These shortcomings must be remedied as soon as possible in the face of the climate emergency. Volt proposes the following measures:
- Ensure a real redistribution of ENR gains within the territories:
- Systematic redistribution of economic gains to local actors through municipal participation in corporate taxes and subsidy contracts.
- Industrial training and employment plan to increase jobs linked to local projects
- Systematic coupling of renewable energies with local applications (electric charging stations, green hydrogen production for local industry, etc.)
- Democratic co-construction of the ENR plans within the regions by, for and with the local actors
- Like the strategic documents for offshore wind power, a real democratic debate must be organised to allow local actors and populations to express their opinion on the implementation of renewable energy.
- Autonomy of the regions for the planning of renewable energies, as long as they deliver their share towards the national objectives
- A regional referent appointed by the respective regional council, not by the state
- Promoting ultra-local projects and citizen energy
- Encourage self-consumption of energy and state co-financing of technology acquisition costs for individuals
- Expand the conditions for agri voltaic and give more state-owned infrastructure sites to municipalities for RE use
- Citizen's energy: possibility to submit mixed remuneration supplement / ("PPA") offers and new provision on the obligation for the RE project developer to offer the municipality / PEC of implementation a share in the company's capital
- Making better use of state resources
- Increase public service resources to speed up project analysis
- The deployment of renewable energy in connection with existing infrastructure should be more binding. The obligation to deploy solar on car parks is positive but tarnished by too many potential exemptions. The State shareholder in key infrastructures (such as railways, or motorways where the State remains the owner of the works) must modify the concession contracts in order to free up surfaces for ENR or other climate projects.
About Volt
As the first truly pan-European party, Volt is committed to reforming the European Union and responding to today's challenges in a coordinated way at European level. Volt's vision: a progressive Europe with an inclusive society, a climate-friendly economy, an adaptable education system and self-determined digitalisation.
Volt is convinced that only the democratic participation of all European citizens will prepare us for a sustainable, economically strong and socially just future. This is why Volt acts at all levels - from local to European, as a movement and as a party. The movement gives everyone a voice and the opportunity to engage politically from within society. Today, Volt is present all over Europe: thousands of people of all ages and professions are involved in 30 European countries with teams in hundreds of cities.
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Contact
Johannes Leininger - Responsable Ile-de-France Volt
Mail : johannes.leininger@volteuropa.org
Perrine Richard
Mail : perrine.richard@volteuropa.org
Zoé Gadeyne - Co-Responsable Communication
Mail : zoe.gadeyne@volteuropa.org
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Updated on March 13th, 2023.