UPDATE 1-France aims to boost decarbonised power production by 20% over decade, encourage demand

France ‌will seek ​to boost electricity production from nuclear and renewables by 20% over the next decade, and will publish an electrification plan soon to help ‌drive the move away from fossil fuels, Finance Minister Roland Lescure said on Friday. Answering questions about the country's newly published energy planning law (PPE), Lescure said he would meet with industry leaders to discuss support ‌measures for electric vehicles and other electrification subsidies for inclusion in the 2027 budget.

"Our demand growth ‌plan is ambitious but realistic ... and state support will come at a reasonable cost to public finances," he told reporters. The PPE sets targets for France's power mix and governs wind and solar tenders for 10 years. It was passed ⁠by ​decree on Friday morning, three ⁠years late, as disagreement raged among lawmakers over subsidizing renewables and financing new nuclear reactors at a time when France ⁠struggles with high debt.

The PPE sets the target for decarbonised electricity production at between 650 and 693 terawatt-hours ​by 2035, from a current level of 540 TWh. It also aims to have 70% ⁠of France's energy consumption come from decarbonised electricity in 2035. Currently 60% of consumption comes from oil and gas and their ⁠derivatives.

"We ​will have 7 million electric vehicles by 2035 in France, five times more than we currently do," Lescure said. Lescure previously stated the decision to lower France's renewables targets was due ⁠to power demand growing more slowly than expected — something he hoped to change, including by maintaining support ⁠for corporate EV fleets ⁠and potentially issuing tenders to boost consumption.

Friday's PPE cut wind and solar targets by about 20%, while nuclear power production targets were boosted 5% ‌to 2035.