By Geert De Clercq

PARIS (Reuters). France announced Wednesday that it will eliminate government subsidies to install residential gas heaters. It will also increase support for renewable energy heating, in an effort to reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuel exports.

France plans to stop its imports from Russia of oil and gas by 2027 as part of the government’s “resilience program” that aims at helping companies and households deal with the financial fallout from Russia’s invasion in Ukraine.

France is reforming its MaPrimeRenov subsidy program to reduce the demand for gas. This will allow France to replace fossil fuel-fired heaters by renewable heat sources like heat pumps, biomass, and hybrids.

Between April 15 and 2022 it will go up by 1,000 Euros ($1,102). The subsidy for “virtuous residential heating” will also increase. New gas heater subsidies will no longer be available.

Barbara Pompili (environment minister) stated at a press conference that “support for new gas heaters” will not be supported in an effort to discourage people from being dependent on natural gas.

In addition, she said that households will be able to switch from fossil-fuel-burning heaters to renewable energy by combing the renovation premium and other support measures like energy certificates.

She stated that “in the long-term, we want Russian fossil fuel energy to be eliminated and all fossil energy in general,”

Heat pumps, which extract energy from the ground or air to make calories, have seen a rapid increase in demand across Europe over the past few years.

According to the European Heat Pump Association, heat pumps will account for more than 25% in annual heater sales. Heat pumps are fast becoming the preferred solution for building new homes and being increasingly used in renovations.

The electrification of residential heating is a key plank of European Union policies to decarbonise Europe’s buildings https://www.eprg.group.cam.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2037-Text.pdf.

France’s state energy and environment agency ADEME will provide new assistance of 150 million Euros to assist municipalities and companies in switching to renewable heating.

($1 = 0.9075 euros)