French Industry Embraces the Low-Carbon Transition

More than a quarter of heat production already comes from renewable sources, but further decarbonisation is still needed — and France has the capacity to achieve it. Across the country, both R&D projects and regional infrastructure initiatives are accelerating.

“Those who commit early to decarbonisation build today’s and tomorrow’s competitive advantage; those who wait risk falling behind,” warns Laurent Kraif, president of Perfesco, in an op-ed published in Les Echos (French business newspaper). According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), energy-efficiency investments have delivered returns above 10% for many industrial companies over the past five years.

Where does France stand?

Renewable heat accounted for 27.8% of total heat consumption in France in 2023, despite recent growth.

The country relies on a broad mix of mature solutions using locally available resources — biomass, geothermal heat, waste heat recovery, household waste and ambient air heat. Supported by public policies placing local territories at the centre of the strategy, France has strong foundations to complete this energy transition.

A model emerging in the foundry sector

After three and a half years of collaboration and innovation, the Decisiff programme (Development of Competitiveness through Strategic Innovation for the Future of Foundries) is paving the way for a more agile and sustainable French foundry industry ready to face electrification challenges. Funded by the national recovery plan, the initiative brought together five French foundries — Groupe SAB, Fonderie Lorraine, Saint-Jean-Industrie, ID Casting and GMD Eurocast — alongside Cetim (French Technical Centre for Mechanical Industries) to accelerate the sector’s transformation. Its objective is to modernise processes, strengthen competitiveness and reduce environmental impact. 

“Over three and a half years and more than 25,000 hours of R&D, cooperation produced major advances in three areas: metal additive manufacturing and conformal cooling (cooling channels shaped to match mould geometry) for tooling, data science to better use production data, and reducing the environmental footprint of products and processes,” explains Cetim. Supported by the Directorate General for Enterprise (DGE – French industry authority), the Automotive Platform (PFA – automotive industry organisation) and Bpifrance (public investment bank), the collaborative approach was praised for “the strength of an original collective effort.” The momentum continues with new joint projects: Thermout, Pressure Die Casting and Perfod.

Decarbonisation projects boosting regional attractiveness

Local territories are also driving the transition, illustrated by Marseille’s plan to transform the Fos-sur-Mer industrial port zone. The Grand Port Maritime de Marseille (port authority) has approved the largest investment programme since the zone was created 62 years ago.

“This energy transition project will make the site a leading multi-energy maritime hub in the Mediterranean,” said Hervé Martel, chairman of the executive board, in Les Echos. €1.3 billion will be invested by 2030 — four times the previous plan — alongside industrial commitments estimated between €15 and €20 billion. The aim is to halve greenhouse-gas emissions in one of the country’s largest industrial areas (10,000 hectares and over 40,000 jobs). Infrastructure modernisation will support a “new green economy” while strengthening the port’s logistics attractiveness, notably through the development of a low-carbon energy and fuels production cluster. The port is already well positioned in liquefied natural gas (LNG) traffic, up 40% since 2024, and also plans to expand hydrogen activities, including hosting the NeoCarb sustainable fuel production plant for maritime and aviation sectors.

Conclusion

The green economy is now spreading across all layers of industry. Although the share of renewable and recovered heat can still grow, France has significant strengths to support the transition.