France will build at least six new nuclear reactors in the decades to come, President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday, placing nuclear power at the heart of his country's drive for carbon neutrality by 2050, reports FRANCE 24.
Macron said the new plants would be built and operated by state-controlled energy provider EDF and that tens of billions of euros in public financing would be mobilized to finance the projects and safeguard EDF's finances.
Promising to accelerate the development of solar and offshore wind power in France, Macron also announced he wanted to extend the lives of older nuclear plants to 50 years from 40 years currently provided it was safe.
"We are fortunate in France to be able to count on a strong nuclear industry, rich in know-how and with hundreds of thousands of jobs," Macron said, unveiling his new nuclear strategy in the eastern industrial town of Belfort.
The announcement comes at a difficult time for debt-laden EDF which is grappling with corrosion problems that have forced multiple old nuclear reactors offline for extended periods and with having to persuade foreign buyers it can deliver projects on time and to budget.