PARIS, Feb. 8 - The French consumption of primary energy decreased 5 percent in 2009, mainly due to economic recession, the General Commission for Sustainable Development said on Monday in an economic report.
The report said France has consumed 251 million tons of oil equivalent (Mtoe) last year, as adjusted for climate, and the energy production also fell by 7 percent compared to 2008, standing at 114 Mtoe.
Economic regression sharply brought down the industrial consumption, but increased household consumption of electricity and fuels partially offset the trend, the commission pointed out in its report.
France's nuclear production fell to 390 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2009, 7 percent less than last year and the lowest level for 10 years. The renewable electricity production also decreased by 6 percent year-on-year.
Although the high fuel demand in winter brought coal consumption 20 percent higher in December 2009 than in 2008, the whole year consumption after all declined by 12 percent from the level of 2008, as the demand of steel industry dropped remarkably by 29 percent.
The new report posted that the CO2 emissions grew 3 percent in December but decreased 4 percent throughout 2009.
Due to decline in oil prices, France spent 35.3 billion euros ( 48.2 billion U.S. dollars) to cover the energy bill of the first 11 months of 2009, down 35 percent from the previous year, while revenues from electricity exports also went down by 66 percent to 909 million euros (1.242 billion U.S. dollars).
The report said France has consumed 251 million tons of oil equivalent (Mtoe) last year, as adjusted for climate, and the energy production also fell by 7 percent compared to 2008, standing at 114 Mtoe.
Economic regression sharply brought down the industrial consumption, but increased household consumption of electricity and fuels partially offset the trend, the commission pointed out in its report.
France's nuclear production fell to 390 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2009, 7 percent less than last year and the lowest level for 10 years. The renewable electricity production also decreased by 6 percent year-on-year.
Although the high fuel demand in winter brought coal consumption 20 percent higher in December 2009 than in 2008, the whole year consumption after all declined by 12 percent from the level of 2008, as the demand of steel industry dropped remarkably by 29 percent.
The new report posted that the CO2 emissions grew 3 percent in December but decreased 4 percent throughout 2009.
Due to decline in oil prices, France spent 35.3 billion euros ( 48.2 billion U.S. dollars) to cover the energy bill of the first 11 months of 2009, down 35 percent from the previous year, while revenues from electricity exports also went down by 66 percent to 909 million euros (1.242 billion U.S. dollars).
