The global economy is undergoing a radical metamorphosis. Digitalization and decarbonization, these two major transitions, will shake up hierarchies. If France does not keep up, watch out for the downfall.
Electric cars
China in ambush
Without realizing it, the electric car is making its nest in France. After decades of relocation, Renault is transforming its factories still present in Hauts-de-France into assembly bases for its future battery-powered models. Stellantis has set up the first battery production site of its joint venture ACC in Douvrin (Pas-de-Calais). The €846 million in French subsidies are not for nothing… The €1.5 billion in public support has also attracted ProLogium, in Dunkirk, to produce new-generation batteries.
A support for supply that Bruno Le Maire has doubled with work on demand, through the ecological bonus and social leasing. So many efforts that the next tenant of Bercy will have to continue, at a time when China is maneuvering to get around the customs barriers imposed by Brussels and flood the European market. Even if it means considering mechanisms to promote, on a national and European scale, the development of small, accessible electric cars. Vehicles with a much smaller environmental footprint than SUVs, and which would have the merit of democratizing electric while securing many jobs in the sector.
AI: a halt?
“Relief is the word that dominates here,” says Roxanne Varza, the director of Station F. The RN scarecrow frightened this start-up incubator, the epicenter of artificial intelligence in France. However, the future remains unclear. The race for AI is often compared to that of space in the 1960s. Mastering this technology will be decisive in the scientific, military and economic fields. And speed is a key factor. While she was hoping for a new phase of acceleration, Véronique Torner, the president of Numeum, the professional organization of the digital ecosystem, now fears a slowdown and the arrival of new interlocutors who are not always aware of the priorities. The expert is thinking, for example, of the simplification law that should facilitate the installation of new data centers, essential to the training and use of AI. Will it go through with its process? Foreign investments in the billions of euros – including those of Microsoft – have been decided on the basis of this text.
Marianne Tordeux-Bitker, director of public relations for the France Digitale lobby, is concerned about the smooth running of the France 2030 plan, which is crucial for public investment in innovative technologies such as AI: “This represents a total of 54 billion euros, reviewed with each draft finance bill.” What priorities will the next government set? Finally, what about the valuable recommendations, particularly on AI training, from the Aghion-Bouverot report released in the spring? Or the direction of the world summit on AI that France is due to organize next February? The ecosystem is beginning to mourn the loss of Macron’s “start-up nation” that gave it momentum. “We will have to find new promoters,” points out Marianne Tordeux-Bitker.
Renewables
The keystone of the green industry
Here, the urgent task is to… catch up. The renewable energy sector is desperately awaiting the new strategic roadmaps from the State, which were repeatedly postponed due to a lack of majority in the previous Assembly. “The adoption of these texts is a legal obligation, which was planned for last summer and then delayed, which is damaging, because they must guide political action”, regrets Andreas Rüdinger, transition specialist at the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations.
Two major texts are expected: the multi-year energy programming, which sets the trajectory and objectives to be achieved by sector by 2030, and the national plan for adaptation to climate change. Will these documents be able to be adopted in the current context? The mystery looms, and this in-between situation risks having consequences. On future calls for tenders in offshore wind power – essential for future electricity production – which could be delayed, but also for companies that still lack visibility on energy costs, which is slowing down the rise of the green industry. Our European partners are also watching us on these subjects.
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