After discussing the load factor of power generators, let’s relate it to the average lifetime of the installations to calculate the energy produced over the lifetime of an installed MWe (TWh).

Indeed, not all power generation systems have the same lifetime. It can go from simple to double between wind turbines (20 years) and a hydroelectric installation (50 years).

Be careful, however, this value is the one taken into account in life cycle analyses, some facilities may see their lifespan extended by new investments: this is the major overhaul for the French nuclear fleet or the drilling of new wells for a geothermal facility.

👉 Unsurprisingly, non-intermittent energies, of which geothermal is one, come out on top!

👉 One MWe installed in geothermal energy produces 4 times more than the same MWe of wind or solar over its lifetime

👉 The raw materials needed to manufacture the installations are therefore much better used in geothermal energy.

If France, as announced, wishes to continue its investment in nuclear power while accompanying it with renewable energies, it would do well to look at geothermal energy because it offers the same advantages in terms of piloting and quantity of energy produced over the lifetime of the installations!

💡 Geothermal energy for heat and power production is an excellent territorial complement to the energy mix, in metropolitan France and in the DROMs.

💡 France must support an ambitious, innovative sector that respects practices recognized by peers.