France must speed up procedures for solar, wind projects, says TotalEnergies CEO

By America Hernandez

PARIS (Reuters) - France must make it easier to develop solar and wind energy projects, Patrick Pouyanne, chief executive of French energy firm TotalEnergies said on Tuesday, adding that Germany issued permits twice as quickly.

Pouyanne said he would not continue to invest time and money in renewables in France if procedures did not accelerate.

"In the U.S. I built 2 gigawatts in one year ... I don’t understand why we are able to renovate Notre Dame Cathedral in five years and not be able to build solar or wind plants (at the same pace) in France," Pouyanne said at the French electricity union (UFE) annual conference.

"Do we want, yes or no, to give ourselves in this country the means to build energy? If we don't we will have to make choices and go toward countries where it’s easier, there is one nearby named Germany ... over there to get authorisations, it is twice as fast."

France aims to have 45 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind in operation by 2050 to achieve carbon neutrality.

So far, two offshore wind farms totalling 0.97 GW are fully operational, with bidding for tenders alone lasting 2.5 to 3 years on average.

TotalEnergies has a global renewables portfolio of 27 GW of gross installed capacity, with plans to reach 35 GW by 2025 and 100 GW by 2030.

(Reporting by America Hernandez; writing by Dominique Patton; editing by Jason Neely and Susan Fenton)