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Low-carbon options for the French power sector: What role for renewables, nuclear energy and carbon capture and storage?

Author

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  • Behrang Shirizadeh

    (CIRED / TOTAL S.A.)

  • Philippe Quirion

    (CIRED)

Abstract

In the wake of the Paris agreement, France has set a zero net greenhouse gas emission target by 2050. This target can only be achieved by rapidly decreasing the share of fossil fuels and accelerating the deployment of low-carbon technologies. We develop a detailed model of the power sector to investigate the role of different low emission and negative emission technologies in the French electricity mix and we identify the impact of the relative cost of these technologies for various values of the social cost of carbon (SCC). We show that for a wide range of SCC values (from 0 to 500€/tCO2), the optimal power mix consists of roughly 75% of renewable power. For a SCC value of 100€/tCO2, the power sector becomes nearly carbon neutral while for 200€/tCO2 and more, it provides negative emissions. The availability of negative emission technologies can decrease the system cost by up to 18% and can create up to 20MtCO2/year of negative emissions, while the availability of new nuclear is much less important. This study demonstrates the importance of an effective SCC value (as a tax for positive emissions and remuneration for negative emissions) to reach carbon neutrality for moderate costs. Negative emissions may represent an important carbon market which can attract investments if supported by public policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Behrang Shirizadeh & Philippe Quirion, 2020. "Low-carbon options for the French power sector: What role for renewables, nuclear energy and carbon capture and storage?," Policy Papers 2020.01, FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.
    • Handle: RePEc:fae:ppaper:2020.01
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    Cited by:

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    6. Shirizadeh, Behrang & Quirion, Philippe, 2022. "The importance of renewable gas in achieving carbon-neutrality: Insights from an energy system optimization model," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    7. Choo, Hyunwoong & Kim, Yong-Gun & Kim, Dongwoo, 2024. "Power sector carbon reduction review for South Korea in 2030," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    8. Ozan Korkmaz & Bihrat Önöz, 2022. "Modelling the Potential Impacts of Nuclear Energy and Renewables in the Turkish Energy System," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-25, February.
    9. Thimet, P.J. & Mavromatidis, G., 2022. "Review of model-based electricity system transition scenarios: An analysis for Switzerland, Germany, France, and Italy," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    10. Alexis Tantet & Philippe Drobinski, 2021. "A Minimal System Cost Minimization Model for Variable Renewable Energy Integration: Application to France and Comparison to Mean-Variance Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-38, August.
    11. Zimmermann, Florian & Keles, Dogan, 2022. "State or market: Investments in new nuclear power plants in France and their domestic and cross-border effects," Working Paper Series in Production and Energy 64, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Industrial Production (IIP).
    12. Holz, Franziska & Scherwath, Tim & Crespo del Granado, Pedro & Skar, Christian & Olmos, Luis & Ploussard, Quentin & Ramos, Andrés & Herbst, Andrea, 2021. "A 2050 perspective on the role for carbon capture and storage in the European power system and industry sector," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    13. Shi, Xingping & He, Qing & Lu, Chang & Wang, Tingting & Cui, Shuangshuang & Du, Dongmei, 2023. "Variable load modes and operation characteristics of closed Brayton cycle pumped thermal electricity storage system with liquid-phase storage," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 715-730.
    14. Aleksandra Badora & Krzysztof Kud & Marian Woźniak, 2021. "Nuclear Energy Perception and Ecological Attitudes," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-18, July.
    15. Lin, Boqiang & Xie, Yongjing, 2022. "Analysis on operational efficiency and its influencing factors of China’s nuclear power plants," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 261(PA).
    16. Alexis Tantet & Philippe Drobinski, 2021. "A Minimal System Cost Minimization Model for Variable Renewable Energy Integration: Application to France and Comparison to Mean-Variance Analysis," Post-Print hal-03350191, HAL.
    17. Handayani, Kamia & Anugrah, Pinto & Goembira, Fadjar & Overland, Indra & Suryadi, Beni & Swandaru, Akbar, 2022. "Moving beyond the NDCs: ASEAN pathways to a net-zero emissions power sector in 2050," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 311(C).
    18. Behrang Shirizadeh & Philippe Quirion, 2023. "Long-term optimization of the hydrogen-electricity nexus in France," Post-Print hal-04347126, HAL.
    19. Henni, Sarah & Schäffer, Michael & Fischer, Peter & Weinhardt, Christof & Staudt, Philipp, 2023. "Bottom-up system modeling of battery storage requirements for integrated renewable energy systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 333(C).
    20. Shirizadeh, Behrang & Quirion, Philippe, 2023. "Long-term optimization of the hydrogen-electricity nexus in France: Green, blue, or pink hydrogen?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    21. Migliavacca, Milena & Patel, Ritesh & Paltrinieri, Andrea & Goodell, John W., 2022. "Mapping impact investing: A bibliometric analysis," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    22. Behrang Shirizadeh, 2020. "Carbon-neutral future with sector-coupling; relative role of different mitigation options in energy sector," Working Papers 2020.19, FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Power system modelling; Variable renewables; Negative emissions; Social cost of carbon; Nuclear energy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q47 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Energy Forecasting
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • Q21 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Demand and Supply; Prices

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