Energy balance in 2022: the crisis in nuclear power generation came at the worst possible time

Against a backdrop of sharply rising oil and gas prices, France’s energy balance deteriorated by EUR 68 billion. With a structural surplus of electricity, France could have benefited from a positive shock for this part of its energy supply, but, according to our estimate, the unavailability of part of its nuclear power fleet added EUR 16 billion to the energy bill in 2022.