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Regional renewable Energy "Ile-of-France"

Background

The Île de France connurbation accounts for 16% of all the energy consumed in France: a total of around 29.5 Mtoe. This is mainly provided by oil and natural gas, which results in the emission of 50 million tonnes of CO2 annually. A recent study carried out by ARENE, the energy agency for the Ile-de-France showed that 95% of that amount is imported, despite the fact there is considerable potential for the development of indigenous sources such as biomass, biogas and geothermal, solar, and wind power.

For over eight years, the agency has been working to raise the awareness of economic and public actors as to the importance of renewable energies. To do so it runs dissemination actions, and also organises visits, feasibility studies and pilot projects. In addition, the agency, which is associated with the Regional Council, is responsible for energy efficiency programmes and for assisting local authorities in the preparation of a Local Agenda 21.

Objectives/actions

The main objectives pursued by ARENE are:

• promotion of local and renewable energy sources,
• reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutant emissions associated with burning fossil fuels,
• implementation of energy channels and creation of local employment,
• reduction of heating costs for local communities and social housing companies.

With a view to achieving the objectives enumerated above, ARENE has worked on a number of actions in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources. The pattern normally followed starts with the identification of good practices that can be applied to the special characteristics of Ile-de-France; as a second step, the agency evaluates the feasibility of the different options in collaboration with key regional agents; finally, ARENE implements a dissemination strategy and supports a number of pilot projects which are potentially able demonstrate the technology well.

In general, the studies conducted to date have highlighted the potential of biomass from wood (estimated to be between 100,000 to 300,000 toe), straw (35,000 toe) and energy crops (171,500 toe). The recovery of energy from municipal solid waste or solid residues from water treatment plants is also worth mentioning (given the population density of the region) and has been estimated at around 300,000 toe in the case of biogas alone. A recent study of wind potential has revealed spare capacity of 100 MW in the short term, rising to about 500 MW in the long term. A pilot plant was brought into operation recently in Guitrancourt. The other two noteworthy sources of renewable energy are geothermal and solar thermal. Geothermal energy is well developed and at present more than 140,000 dwellings are heated from this source. In the case of solar thermal, although it considered as the most important renewable energy (RE) source in the area, it is still underutilized.

The table below summarises some of the recent actions organised by ARENE, their timing and their current progress :

As mentioned, these actions are complemented by demonstration and dissemination activities, such as feasibility studies and pilot plants (around 10 a year), site visits, publication of leaflets, technical guides and other material and the preparation of articles for the mass media.

This document is an extract of Cd-rom: Renawable Energy For Europe/Campaign for Take-Off

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