Subsidy (Fonds Chaleur)

Updated: 07.02.2019

Author: Helena Vidalic

The French government has introduced a heat fund (Fonds Chaleur) in order to support the production of heat through renewable energy plants (Art. 19 §4, Loi n° 2009-967). During the period between 2009 and 2013, the heat fund was endowed with a budget amounting to € 1.2 billion. In April 2015, the Minister of Energy Ségolène Royal announced that the fund credits shall be increased to € 420 million by 2017.  In 2018, the budget is estimated at  € 540 million. The administration of the heat fund was delegated to the Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME- Agence de Développement de l´Environnement et de Maitrise de l´Énergie). The budget of the heat fund is divided into two subvention types: on the one hand, a national call for tenders, which is published yearly for large biomass plants, on the other hand the support of other renewable energy projects is administered on a regional level by the regional agencies of the ADEME. 

The present information on the financial support granted through the heat fund only focus on the national call for tenders for large biomass plants with a heat production over 1,000 toe per year. The subsidies provided at regional level are not presented on this database. For more information on the regional subsidies provided through the heat fund for renewable energies, please consult the website of the ADEME under: http://www.ademe.fr/expertises/energies-renouvelables-reseaux-stockage/passer-a-laction/produire-chaleur/fonds-chaleur-bref

The call for tender 2018 opened on 12.10.2018 and closed on 31.01.2019. Please refer to the website of the ADEME for more information on the call for tender 2018: https://appelsaprojets.ademe.fr/aap/ENERGIEBIO2018-83

Eligible technologies

Only biomass plants with a heat production over 1,000 toe per year are eligible, provided they are submitted for the industrial, agricultural and service sectors.

Biomass

Eligible under certain conditions as defined in the book of requirements and specifications of the ADEME (cahier des charges de l´Appel à projets Biomasse Chaleur Industrie, Agriculture et Tertiaire) regarding among others the percentage of wood fuel of the plant. 

Amount

The payment to be awarded is calculated in accordance with the successful tenderer's finance plan and with consideration of the relation between the amount of support asked for and the amount of renewable heat produced.

Procedure

Process flow

The call for tenders of the heat fund are published on a yearly basis. Projects shall submit a tender application, provided they meet the eligibility conditions of the tender.

Competent authority

The Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME- Agence de Développement de l´Environnement et de Maitrise de l´Énergie) is in charge of the implementation of the heat fund subventions on behalf of the French government.

Distribution of costs

State

The support programme is financed by a € 540 million fund established by the French government.

France

Further information

  • Agence de l’Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l‘Energie (ADEME) – Energy Agency
  • +33 241 204 120
  • ADEME website

Basic information on legal sources