France and Finland join forces on energy and climate: the two nuclear power nations will submit a joint declaration ahead of European Council to defend "their conception" of energy diversification and independence
Finnish prime minister, Alexander Stubb, paid an official visit to France this week (3 October 2014). Energy was among the topics discussed between the French and Finnish heads of state and government. Both nations have a high share of nuclear power in their electricity production, France with approximately 75 percent and Finland with 30 percent. Both countries are concomitantly pushing for the development of the sector for renewable energy.
This similarity in energy mix is motivating the two countries to submit a joint declaration ahead of the European Council scheduled on 23-24 October to defend their vision of the diversification of energy sources and reduced reliance on foreign energy supplies.
The text of the joint declaration is not yet available - or even finalised - , but the main components have been revealed during the joint press conference hold in Paris on 3 October. Both countries want to re-affirm the place taken by nuclear power in their energy mix. Such place may be reduced, but there will not be any phase-out of nuclear power in these two countries. This is in line with the underlying phylosophy of the French law proposal on Energy Transition for Green Growth (currently debatted by the Parliament), namely that the objective is not to oppose the different sources of energy, but to build "a new balance" based on their complementarity, and to provide for a framework for their evolution in parallel. Similarly, "The future [...] is not the domination of one or two sources but the complementarity of diverse energy sources and the flexibility of their use, facilitated by intelligent and communicative networks." (exposé des motifs, 2014).
Another similarity between France and Finland is that both countries aim to reduce their greenhouse gases emissions, as well as their reliance on foreign energy supply.
Hereafter follow some quotes (non-official translation to English) from the press conference:
Quotations from F. Hollande, French president:
- "As regards energy, France and Finland share the same visions and are aiming to the diversification of their energy mix, with renewable energies which must reach their full range and nuclear power which must keep its position."
- "Our joint ambition is to be as less as possible dependent on foreign energy sources and to reduce our greenhouse gases emissions."
- "We will submit a joint text to the European Council to be hold at the end of October, with the specific purpose of defending this conception of energy diversification and independence in the perspective of the 2015 Climate Conference in Paris."
Quotations from A. Stubb, Finnish prime minister:
- "We are following exactly the same positions, which means that we aim to develop two tracks. The first one is the one of renewable energies, and the second one is the one of nuclear power. This is now a rare combination in Europe."
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