Total outages of nuclear reactors in France 2019-2021, by type

France registered a total of over 5,800 days of nuclear reactor unavailability in 2021. The peak in unavailability occurred in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. All nuclear reactors present in France were affected by the power outages.

A slow decline

Although France is among the global leaders for operable nuclear power capacity, the country faced a decline in domestic net nuclear power capacity in 2020 and 2021. An even more noticeable decrease occurred in France's nuclear energy production, with a 20-year low recorded in 2020.

What does the future hold?

The energy production outlook for France anticipated some 180 terawatt-hours in nuclear energy to be generated in 2050. However, the electricity provider EDF Group, which manages the whole French nuclear fleet, faced significant technical operating anomalies in 2020 and 2021. They led to 280 days of forced shutdown in 2020, with loss of power supply to the country. EDF is now inspecting the French nuclear fleet, planning to finish by 2025.