Record investments. 28 projects, for a total amount of 13 billion euros, will be announced this Monday as part of the sixth edition of “Choose France”. This annual meeting between Emmanuel Macron and bosses of multinationals aims to encourage foreigners to invest in France. And it succeeded: this year, the amount of foreign direct investment (FDI) planned via this summit exceeds that of 2022 (10.6 billion euros) and 2021 (3.6 billion euros).
To discuss this, Emmanuel Macron invited some 200 leaders of international companies to the Palace of Versailles on May 15. More than half will participate in “Choose France” for the first time, according to the Elysée. The projects announced should enable the creation of 8,000 jobs. Sector by sector, here is the detail of the planned investments.
Transport
This is the most important investment of this season: the Taiwanese group ProLogium will pay 5.2 billion euros for the construction of a battery factory for electric cars in Dunkirk (North). This city was erected by the Elysée as a “symbol” of an industrial awakening in France. The ProLogium project should enable the creation of 3,000 direct jobs.
Also in Dunkirk, the Chinese XTC and the French Orano will invest 1.5 billion euros to set up a recycling and production plant for lithium battery components, with 1,700 jobs at stake. This factory is presented as “complementary” to that of ProLogium, because it will intervene “upstream” of the production of electric batteries.
In addition to these two creations, the Italian Iveco plans to extend these sites in Annonay (Ardèche) and Bourbon-Lancy (Saône-et-Loire) for 115 million euros. The Portuguese charging station operator Powerdot will announce an investment of 140 million euros to create 66 jobs.
Energy
Emmanuel Macron will also announce on May 15 the establishment of a solar panel production plant in Sarreguemines (Moselle). The project is led by Holosolis, an offshoot of the European group InnoEnergy, which will invest 700 million euros. The factory should allow the creation of 1,700 jobs by 2027, according to the Minister of Industry Roland Lescure. “For years, we have subsidized photovoltaic panels made on the other side of the world, there they will be Made in France”, he welcomed on France info.
The start-up Newcleo, present in France, the United Kingdom and Italy, is planning an investment plan of 3 billion euros over the period 2025-2030 to develop a small new generation nuclear reactor in France.
Health
The American Pfizer will invest 500 million euros in France, and the British GSK, 400 million euros. This expenditure will above all allow GSK to produce Ventoline, a medicine for the fight against asthma, developed at three sites in Evreux (Eure), Mayenne (Mayenne) and Saint-Amand-les-Eaux (North). The Italian biotech Sapio should also invest 200 million euros over three years for an acquisition and an extension of activity.
Distribution
Another major project: Ikea, the Swedish furniture giant, will invest 906 million euros in France by 2026. “We will invest in existing sites and also in new establishments”, detailed Johan Laurell, CEO of ‘Ikea France. A new logistics center should thus open its doors near Toulouse, with “very likely” jobs at the key. Ikea has also confirmed the installation of a similar platform in Limay (Yvelines) from 2026.
Agrifood
The American company Mars will invest 130 million euros in the Grand-Est, Occitanie and Hauts-de-France.
Telecoms
Finland’s Nokia will create 500 jobs in its research and experimental development (R&D) centers in Saclay (Essonne) and Lannion (Côtes d’Armor).
It should be noted that the investments presented in the context of “Choose France” represent only a small part of the FDI carried out each year in France. 1,725 projects with mostly foreign capital were established in the territory last year, according to Business France. The firm EY has identified 1,259, making France the most attractive country in Europe for foreign investors in terms of number of projects.
On the other hand, in terms of amount, France is far from the podium. 14 billion dollars of FDI were made in 2021, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Cnuced), which makes it the sixth most attractive European nation.