France will fine nightly illuminated advertising in the interests of energy saving

France begins to take severe energy saving measures in the event of a shortage of gas and electricity in Europe, starting in the fall, due to the war in Ukraine and the tension with Russia.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
24 July 2022 Sunday 15:48
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France will fine nightly illuminated advertising in the interests of energy saving

France begins to take severe energy saving measures in the event of a shortage of gas and electricity in Europe, starting in the fall, due to the war in Ukraine and the tension with Russia. There will be fines for stores and department stores that have their doors open while the air conditioning or heating is on. Luminous advertising between 1 in the morning and 6 in the morning will also be sanctioned.

President Emmanuel Macron prepared the ground a few days ago by announcing the launch of an "energy sobriety" plan to deal with the current geopolitical crisis. The initiative begins to take shape. The Minister for Energy Transition, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, in an interview published yesterday by Le Journal du Dimanche, recalled that the intention is to reduce energy consumption by 40% between now and 2050. Until 2024, the goal is to lower the consumption 10%.

The minister announced two decrees that provide for a fine of up to 750 euros for commercial areas that do not close their doors while using air conditioning or heating. In addition, nighttime luminous advertising will be prohibited at nightfall, except in train stations and airports.

Some cities have come forward with municipal ordinances to contain the energy waste that comes from having open doors with air conditioning. Paris, Lyon, Besançon and Bourg-en-Bresse have already done so. The fine in the capital will be 150 euros as of today, Monday.

A cut in the Russian gas supply would affect France little directly, as it has various suppliers, including Norway. Almost 70% of French electricity comes from nuclear power plants, although this atomic park is old and half of the facilities are stopped due to technical or maintenance problems. Given the European solidarity in the event that the flow of Russian gas stops, France knows that it could also suffer, on the rebound, supply problems.

French energy policy offers some contradictions. The political objective is to increase coverage through renewable energies such as wind power, but citizen opposition to windmills is strong, for landscape reasons, in the case of land-based installations, and ecological ones, in those located in the sea. It is also not very well understood that, to counteract inflation, the State is directly subsidizing gasoline and diesel with 18 cents per liter. Politically reconciling energy saving and the need to protect the purchasing power of the population is sometimes difficult.