France announces tax on emissions and nuclear power

In a bid to help fund its transition into green energy, France has announced a new tax on carbon emissions and a levy on nuclear energy. The money garnered from the new taxes will help to fund the change from nuclear and fossil fuel derived energy to renewables, in an effort to make the country greener and more energy efficient.

Some €4 billion (£3.3 billion) could be generated by the introduction of the carbon tax by 2016, which will be used to make the country much greener when it comes to energy generation. The taxes are set to be introduced from next year and will be charged on all types of fossil fuels that are used in industry, based upon the amount of carbon emissions they generate.

The announcement was made by French prime minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, following on from president Francois Hollande confirming the details of the tax. While the prime minister estimated the amount that would be generated by the taxation of carbon emissions, he did not announce any details on the amount that is expected to be obtained from the nuclear power levy.

Around €1 billion extra will be available to invest in the country's work to reduce fossil fuel usage, thanks to the carbon tax. The money will be available from 2016 and should help towards France achieving its goal of cutting non-renewable fuel use by 30 per cent before 2030, according to My Ayrault.

France is heavily dependent upon nuclear power, which generates around 75 per cent of the country's overall energy, but president Hollande was elected last year after pledging to reduce this dependency. This latest announcement is a move towards the goal of reducing nuclear power to 50 per cent of the country's power sources by 2025, while also cutting down on the use of fossil fuels to produce energy.

Households will not be affected by the new forms of taxation next year, but after that period it is not clear how the taxes will alter energy bills throughout the country. The introduction of more renewable technologies in order to produce green energy, could, in the long run, help to lower household's annual fuel bills as the cost of power is reduced.