France unveils roadmap to end fossil fuels by 2050

Thursday 30 April 2026 - 09:20

By: Dakir Madiha

France unveils roadmap to end fossil fuels by 2050

France has presented a national roadmap that sets out a phased exit from fossil fuels across its entire economy. The plan targets coal by 2030, oil by 2045 and natural gas by 2050. It places the country on a structured path toward full decarbonisation and long-term climate neutrality.

The announcement was made at an international ministerial conference in Santa Marta, Colombia, where more than 50 countries gathered to discuss the global transition away from fossil energy. The United States did not attend the meeting. French representatives described the roadmap as a consolidated framework that brings together existing energy and climate policies into a single trajectory.

The strategy confirms an annual emissions reduction target of around 5 percent between 2024 and 2028. It also reaffirms France’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050. The plan builds on the national energy programming strategy published in February 2026, which already outlines a gradual reduction of fossil fuels in final energy consumption from nearly 60 percent in 2023 to 40 percent by 2030 and 30 percent by 2035.

The roadmap relies heavily on electrification and infrastructure expansion. It includes the construction of six new EPR2 nuclear reactors, the deployment of offshore wind capacity reaching 15 gigawatts by 2035, and the installation of one million heat pumps per year by 2030. It also confirms a planned ban on gas boilers in new buildings before the end of 2026.

France’s energy mix already depends largely on nuclear power for electricity generation, which limits fossil fuel use in that sector compared with many European peers. However, oil and gas remain dominant in transport and heating, and the country continues to import nearly all of its natural gas. The roadmap aims to reduce this dependence while supporting international financing for energy transitions in other countries.