Europe 1 with AFP 8:15 p.m., February 2, 2023
The government continues to encourage ecological transition and to do this, Minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher has presented a plan to accelerate the use of geothermal energy.
This solution, although expensive, would save very large quantities of gas, and ensure energy independence.
The government presented a plan on Thursday to accelerate the use of geothermal energy in France where this solution remains marginal, compared to Switzerland in particular, but for which individuals will soon benefit from a minimum "boost" of 5,000 euros at from March.
Ultimately, the government would like to increase the number of deep geothermal projects launched by 40% by 2030 - they are currently concentrated in the Paris basin where they supply urban heating networks - and double the number of installations. geothermal heat pumps in homes by 2025.
France has around 200,000 geothermal heat pumps but only around 3,000 are sold per year.
These geothermal heat pumps, which have the disadvantage of being very expensive to install, are “a fairly suitable option, especially in rural areas”, stressed to the press the Minister for Energy Transition Agnès Pannier-Runacher.
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“An investment that makes sense”
"This equipment lasts for decades, so it's really an investment that makes sense", "clearly lowers the bill", "also reduces the carbon footprint of heating and cooling in the summer", also argued the Minister.
At current energy prices, an average household would save at least 800 euros each year by replacing oil heating and nearly 500 euros by replacing gas heating, according to the ministry's calculations.
The aid for the installation of a geothermal heat pump to replace an old thermal boiler will therefore be increased from March to 5,000 euros regardless of income level (compared to 4,000 euros so far for the most modest households and 2,500 euros for the others).
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A plan for a period of 15 to 20 years
This "boost" can be combined with other support systems and reach up to 16,000 euros in public aid for the most modest households, according to the ministry.
The government assumed that such an installation has an average cost "of the order of 18,000 euros" which nevertheless varies greatly depending on the installation.
This can greatly exceed 20,000 euros, depending on the work required, the soil, the number and depth of the boreholes.
Beyond that, the government's plan aims to support the development of the entire industrial sector by investing in the mapping of the subsoil, in the number and training of drillers, or even by strengthening the endowment of the geothermal guarantee fund.
More generally, the aim is to develop geothermal energy, which represents only 1% of heat consumption in France, and approximately 6 TWh.
The plan "must make it possible to produce enough geothermal heat in 15 to 20 years to save 100 TWh/year of gas, i.e. more than Russian gas imports before 2022", according to the minister.
Heating absorbs 50% of the energy consumed in France, and it remains mainly from fossil fuels (fuel oil and gas).
Geothermal energy, which consists of drawing renewable heat from the subsoil linked to the geological functioning of the Earth, represents, on the contrary, only a small fraction of heating.