In this Olympic year, France plans to win a rather special medal: that of green debt. Having started earlier than the others in this race, France will continue to be in the lead this year. To finance this green spending, the State will borrow 15 billion euros in 2024, or 4 billion more than last year, according to a press release from Agence France Trésor (AFT), the Bercy division responsible for issuing the debt.
France’s green debt currently stands at €61.9 billion, compared to 56 billion in Germany and 52 billion in the UK, for example. This green debt corresponds to the outstanding amount of green securities issued by the Treasury.
These specific bonds are specifically used to raise funds to finance expenses linked to the ecological transition. In 2022, they made it possible, among other things, to finance the MaPrimeRénov’ schemes and the eco-PTZ – both intended to help the French carry out energy renovation work in their homes.
The construction sector was also the first recipient of this green money borrowed from the markets, with more than 3.5 billion euros in 2022, according to the latest AFT report which details the monitoring of expenditure corresponding to this type of broadcast. Beyond ecology, the French state plans to raise 285 billion euros on the financial markets in 2024 to finance its spending, crushing last year’s record…