Aid for companies that consume large amounts of gas and electricity is extended until December

Initially scheduled to cease at the end of August, the support fund for companies that consume a lot of gas and electricity for their activity will be extended until the end of December, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Tuesday.

The criteria for accessing this envelope of three billion euros, intended to help companies struggling to meet their energy bills in a context of high inflation, will also be “simplified” and “lightened”.

The eligibility conditions are “prohibitive for companies, I heard the message”, declared the minister on the occasion of the Meeting of Entrepreneurs of France (REF) organized by Medef. For this reason, “we are going to simplify them in the coming weeks, and I am ready to look at all the criteria,” assured the number two of the Government.

Since the launch of this support fund in July, only companies whose gas and electricity purchases reached at least 3% of their turnover in 2021 were eligible.

relaxed criteria

“I am willing to modify this threshold”, affirmed Mr. Le Maire, leaving it to the Minister of Industry, Roland Lescure, to carry out a consultation with the companies to review the criteria for access to aid. The profitability criteria of the companies and the reference period on which this profitability is calculated may also be modified, announced Mr. Le Maire.

The extension of the device comes as gas supplies suffer due to the war between Ukraine and Russia, a major gas exporter that has cut flows sold to European countries to respond to salvos of Western economic sanctions.

This threat of shortages is causing gas prices to skyrocket, while electricity prices have recently exceeded 1,000 euros per megawatt hour in France.

The Presidency of the Republic announced this Tuesday that a Defense Council will be organized around Emmanuel Macron on Friday, to discuss the supply of gas and electricity to France.

On Monday, the European Commission, for its part, said it was ready for an “emergency intervention” aimed at stopping rising energy prices. The European Executive is also working on a “structural reform” of the electricity market, whose price is subject to gas, according to its president, Ursula von der Leyen.