According to preliminary statistics released by the French electricity transport network operator RTE, electricity consumption in France increased by 2.2% in 2015, with strong monthly variations (+2% in July 2015 compared to July 2014 due to very hot weather and -10% in December 2015 due to higher temperatures). Corrected from climate effects, electricity consumption increased by only 0.5%, thanks to a higher demand from industry (+0.2%) and from residential and commercial consumers (+0.6%).
Net power generation increased by 1.1% in 2015 to 546 TWh, with nuclear power generation still accounting for 76% of the French power mix. Hydropower accounted for nearly 11%, followed by thermal power (6.2%) and renewables (6.7%). Wind power generation soared by 23% to 21 TWh and accounted for 3.9% of the power mix. Nearly 1 GW of wind capacity was added during the year and wind capacities exceeded the 10 GW threshold. In addition, 895 MW of solar installations were added in 2015, raising solar capacity to 6.2 GW
Overall, the expansion in the renewable fleet (+2 GW) contributed to the 584 MW increase in total capacity, as around 1.5 GW of coal-fired capacities were shut down in 2015.
In 2015, France exported 91 TWh of electricity and imported 30 TWh. France remained the largest net exporter in Europe and with 121 TWh, total power exchanges reached a new record.
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