2012 Activity and sustainable development report - RTE

INTERVIEW WITH DOMINIQUE MAILLARDDominique Maillard has been Chairman of the RTE Executive Board since May 2007.He was reappointed for a fi ve-year term in August 2010. In 2012, he chairedthe GO15, an association of the world’s sixteen largest power grid operators.CHANGE FORTHE BETTERWHAT WERE THE HIGHLIGHTSOF 2012?Among the most memorable events,I particularly recall the exceptionallycold spell that we experienced in February2012, which resulted in a rise inelectricity consumption of more than 2%.At the same time, the context of the economiccrisis led to a fall in consumption byindustry. On several occasions, consumptionwent beyond the symbolic threshold of100 GW. Thanks to the committed effortsof all the players and the electricity transmissionnetwork grid, we were able to getthrough this unprecedented situation.2012 was also a record year for our investments,which totalled €1.36 billion, or 30%of our sales. The effectiveness of our investmentswas reflected by a solid economicperformance and by a consolidation of thegood results of the past two years withregard to the quality of electricity supply.We are working with great determinationon the programme to protect the securityof the network against harsh weather conditions.We regularly observe that this isproving to be the right decision, and to beeffective. Among the major projects onwhich we are engaged, the IFA 2000 interconnectionwith the United Kingdom hasbeen restored to service at full capacity;construction of the underground directcurrent line between France and Spain waslaunched; and the new very high voltageCotentin-Maine line was almost completed.We are continuing with the renewal ofregional networks, and we have launchedprogrammes, defined in conjunction withlocal authorities, to secure supply to thetwo electricity peninsulas, Brittany and theProvence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. Workson the new underground direct current linkbetween France and Italy will begin in 2013and the consultation process has begunfor the reconstruction of the high-voltageline between Lille and Arras.In the meantime, RTE has been undergoingchange. A new, more transparent centralorganisation based on business lines hasbeen in place since January 2012. It seeksto achieve greater efficiency and speed ofresponse, for the benefit of all our customers.This reorganisation will be extended to ourregional structure. We have signed a newprofit-sharing agreement which encouragesperformance and responsibility. Inaccordance with the provisions of the thirdclimate and energy package, the reinforcementof our capacity, our code of goodconduct and amendments made to ourArticles of Association enabled the EnergyRegulatory Commission (CRE) to certifyRTE as an independent transmissionoperator (ITO) on January 26, 2012. On aEuropean level, our very active involvementin the definition of the new marketarchitecture can be seen by our substantialcontribution to the drafting of the codesfor European networks, which will helpdetermine their future structure.RTE also remains committed to its initiativesto promote sustainable development.Two examples will illustrate this: therenewal of our ISO14001 certification andthe recognition of our commitment tothe National Biodiversity Strategy in 2012.And finally, RTE has continued to fulfil itssocial commitments. We have met ourtarget for increasing the number of womenin the company a year in advance: thereare now 21% of women among our workforce.Our three-year agreement for therecruitment of people with disabilitieswas renewed.THE ENERGY TRANSITIONDEBATE HAS BEGUN.WHAT ROLE IS RTE PLAYING?RTE is at the heart of energy transition,both as an operator and as an expert.In our role as expert, the French parliamenthas assigned us the task of publishingan annual forecast of the balance between14