LRegulated access to historic nuclear electricity (Arenh) is dead, make way for universal nuclear payment (VNU). French specificity, and designed from the start as a transitional measure, the Arenh was in force from July 2011 to December 31, 2025. Since 1is January, a new mechanism replaces it: UNV.
This change in regulation on the sale price of nuclear electricity from EDF, the number one source of electricity in the country, may seem complex. However, it will have a very concrete, but still uncertain, impact on the final bills. Some consumer associations already fear an inflationary effect, due to greater exposure to price volatility on the wholesale market, a sort of “electricity exchange”. As he explained, at the end of 2025, in an exchange with the press, the Ministry of the Economy and Finance wants to see in the new system “a compromise between consumer protection and investment in the energy system”. A challenge, at first glance, as the interests may seem divergent between EDF’s profitability and its customers’ bills. Because the company is in great need of financing for the construction of at least six new reactors, as desired by the State, its sole shareholder.
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