France’s Need to Burn Gas Pushed Power Emissions to Five-Year High
- Gas-fired power output rose 34% in 2022 amid nuclear outages
- France was a net power importer for first time since 1980
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France’s greenhouse gas emissions from its power sector jumped to a five-year high in 2022 as nuclear outages forced it to use more gas to keep the lights during the energy crisis.
Emissions from generating electricity rose 16% to 25 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, grid operator Reseau de Transport d’Electricite said in a report on Thursday. The increase shows how the country’s green goals have faced short-term threats from nuclear maintenance and repairs.