Record of waste of wind and solar electricity in France

In its latest publication. Consequently, the manager of the French electrical network RTE alerts on the explosion of the number of negative price episodes and crest requests. Nevertheless, Clearly: wind turbines. Consequently, solar panels produce much more electricity than we use, and are not always synchronized with our needs. Consequently, Thus, 10 % of production could not be carried out in the first half of 2025. However, A form of waste.

Among the abundant data of the report. Therefore, we first note that the French wind and solar production park continued its growth in the first half of 2025. Therefore, record waste wind solar electricity Indeed, more than 2.3 gigawatts (GW) were connected between early January and end of May, including 2.1 GW of solar and 0.2 GW of wind, terrestrial and sea. Now exceeds wind capacity, itself at 24.6 GW.

These good results on production capacity are to be compared to the market, and the balance of the network. And this is where the rub. If RTE notes that prices for term markets (medium term) tend to drop in France. unlike other European countries (except Spain), the network manager notes a sharp increase in the volatility of the SPOT price (short term).

The trend is schematically as follows: the spot prices become higher. higher during peaks in the morning and evening, and lower and even negative, during the hollow of the afternoon. RTE notes record waste wind solar electricity that the number of negative price episodes exploded in 2025: if 53 hours had been noted in the first half of 2023. then 235 hours in the first half of 2024, no less than 363 hours were noted in the first half of 2025, or 8 % of the time.

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The problems of the abundance of renewable energy – Record waste wind solar electricity

The increase in the frequency of negative prices results directly from the spectacular increase in the quantity of available decarbonized electricity. which is not associated with an increase in demand – including in particular the ability to store this energy in record waste wind solar electricity a profitable manner. And if this production cannot be exported. there is a situation of overproduction; It is also noted that France has already shown itself very clear export of electricity over this period, with 37.6 terawatt hours (TWh).

As a result, renewable production has seen an explosion in the crests of its production. 2,000 Gigawatthers (GWH) were thus danted in the first half, for an average power of 5.2 GW. These figures are to be compared to the 1,100 GWh and 4.3 GW for the same period in 2024. For the period between April. June, 10 % of the theoretically produced volume were lost for solar, compared to 5 % in 2024 and 1 % in 2023.

If the park continues its growth without solutions being set up to record waste wind solar electricity use this energy which could have been produced. the number of events of this type can only grow. Which will lead to all the more lost energy.