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The Gravelines nuclear power plant is a major asset for energy production in Hauts-de-France. It is equipped with six 900 MWe pressurized water reactors, which produced 28.2 TWh of low-CO₂ electricity in 2022. This production covers the needs of around 61% of the Hauts-de-France region’s annual electricity consumption. ISO 14001 certified since 2004, its environmental impact is constantly monitored. It is an example of low-carbon power generation, with only 4g CO₂/KWh emitted over the plant’s entire lifecycle.
The Gravelines nuclear power plant is a major asset for companies with a strong need for stable, reliable, low-carbon energy.
Availability of renewable energy production sources is more and more important for company executives caring about their impact on the environment. It’s also an ecosystem in its own right, where companies are experiencing significant growth.
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Wind power generation in 2022
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Wood energy production in 2020
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Heat pump production in 2021
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Agrofuel production in 2020
Source: Observatoire Climat Hauts-de-France 2023
Hydrogen has raised many hopes about its potential to play an active role in decarbonizing our society. The model is currently being stabilized.
Manufacturers and public authorities are committed to massification projects.
In terms of competitiveness, France is particularly well ranked, thanks to its abundance in nuclear energy, as well as the political willingness to support the industry under construction (notably through the France2030 financing plan).
The Hauts-de-France elaborated a hydrogen roadmap. It is one of the leaders in that sector due to several advantages:
The Hauts-de-France is currently building a battery valley in Europe through the development of Gigafactories on the territory. Those XXL-low-carbon electric-battery-production factories are going to create thousands of jobs and reinforce the competitiveness of automotive regional industry.
The first gigafactory, ACC, is the result of a partnership between PSA/Opel and Total/Saft. It is located in Douvrin and was inaugurated in spring 2023. It will have a capacity of 24 GWh/year by 2030, enough to power 500,000 electric vehicles a year.
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The second gigafactory, Envision AESC, is the result of an investment by the Chinese group Envision, world leader in batteries for electric vehicles. Located in Douai, it will go into production in 2025, with a capacity of 24 GWh/year.
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The third gigafactory, Verkor, is the result of a Franco-European initiative supported by the Hauts-de-France region and the EIT InnoEnergy fund. Located in Bourbourg, near Dunkirk, it will be operational in 2024. Eventually, it will have a capacity of 50 GWh/year, enough to power 1,000,000 electric vehicles a year.
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The fourth Gigafactory is the ambitious project of Taiwanese company ProLogium. Located in Dunkirk, its technology is based on solid batteries rather than lithium-ion. With a capacity of 48 GWh/year, it is scheduled to come on stream in 2026.
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These four gigafactories consolidate Hauts-de-France’s position as French leader and European champion of the energy transition and sustainable mobility. These major sites will encourage the expansion of players in that sector and thus the development of the upstream and downstream industry, with the production of cathodes, anodes, electrolytes and battery recycling. A strategic challenge for both national sovereignty and the circular economy.
Renewable energy sources are by nature intermittent and variable. They require efficient storage to guarantee grid stability. TotalEnergies, in partnership with its subsidiary Saft, commissioned France’s largest battery energy storage site in Dunkirk in December 2021.
This site has a capacity of 61 megawatts, equivalent to the consumption of more than 200,000 households for one hour. It comprises 27 containers equipped with high-tech lithium-ion batteries, capable of delivering optimum energy performance.
The issue of energy storage is inextricably linked to that of efficient management of renewable energies. The Hauts-de-France Region, fully committed to the ecological and bio-economic transition, is developing synergies between private initiatives and public research to bring out the right solutions.
The Hauts-de-France Region is fully committed to public research into new energies to support the energy transition.
In a building at the heart of the University of Picardy Jules Verne in Amiens, a team of expert researchers are immersed in world-class strategic research. The hub opened in 2018 and has the potential to turn Amiens—and the broader Hauts-de-France region—into the industry leader of the booming energy storage sector.
The Energy Hub is a cutting-edge research center, unique in France and intent on designing tomorrow’s batteries today.
It spans 5,500 sq m and includes:
This global center of excellence is focused on industry. The very latest equipment is available to test materials designed in its laboratories in real time.
Businesses can also commission research directly from the teams. Fun fact: Amiens researchers contributed to the battery for the ZOE, Renault’s electric car.
This hub focuses on improving rechargeable battery technologies that include:
RS2E is a public-private network that was awarded the Laboratory of Excellence label (LabEx, held by the 11 STORE-EX laboratories). It is dedicated to accelerating fundamental research in new battery and supercapacitor technologies, leading up to industrial-scale production.
RS2E members include:
4 areas of research:
Based in Amiens, LRCS is a joint research unit with experts from CNRS and the University of Picardy Jules Verne that has been working on the reactivity and chemistry of solids for over 50 years. Its research centers on materials for energy storage and conversion. Its 100 researchers produce cutting-edge work ranging from the atomic level to pre-production prototypes, and from lithium-ion batteries to dye-sensitized solar cells.
