France, Australia take diverging paths to renewable energy

November 19, 2014 | By

While France has set ambitious goals to increase the share of renewables in its energy portfolio, Australia has taken a completely opposite approach -- repealing its 2011 Clean Energy Act, which established a carbon pricing mechanism, according to an analyst with research and consulting firm GlobalData.

France's lower house of parliament recently set a target of 32 percent energy generation from renewable sources by 2030, as part of the approval of the country's energy transition law. The law also aims to reduce carbon emissions by 40 percent from 1990 levels and cut fossil fuel use by 30 percent.

In contrast, since Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott assumed power in September 2013, he has made radical changes to the country's energy policy, including abolishing the carbon tax and reducing a goal to install one million solar roofs.

"France is committed to increasing its share of renewable energy, with Feed-in Tariffs (FiT) and tradable green certificates being the main types of support. The country also has plans to decrease its nuclear power share from the current 75 percent to 50 percent by 2025," said Pranav Srivastava, power analyst, GlobalData. "Meanwhile, Australia's renewable energy targets that are currently under review may be significantly reduced, although the opposition Australian Labor Party is refusing to accept the level of reductions proposed. The country's renewable policy review has severely affected the industry, as investments in the sector were low in the first half of 2014, lower than since the first half of 2001."

Effective from July 2014, Australia's minimum retailer FiT price has been cut from $0.076 per kilowatt hour (kWh) to $0.06/kWh, according to the analyst.

While Australia's alternative energy space has been hit hard, France is pressing forward with plans to promote the industry.

"France plans to invest about €10 billion ($13.41 billion) in renewable energy to cut the country's oil and gas bill and reduce its reliance upon nuclear energy," Srivastava said. "The development of renewable power plants will help the country to create more jobs and decrease greenhouse gas emissions."

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