Jean-François Cirelli, invité de l'économie

Competition is always good for customers; it pushes energy suppliers to be more efficient and innovative. Today at GDF Suez, for example, compared to four years ago, you can subscribe to offers online, get fixed prices for two years, and choose green offers. So we have changed a lot. So yes to competition, and we also benefit. For instance, 2 million French people trust us to manage their electricity, which wasn't the case four years ago. And if you choose GDF Suez, you save €150 compared to other well-known competitors.

I reply that, of course, when you make an energy offer, three elements count: price is important, especially now when many households are struggling; security; and the service you can provide. I also recall that this competitor offers a price for only one year. What happens after? They don't say much about the customers who will choose it because today they haven't chosen—they just signed up. So I think that's important. Security: this is a cut-rate offer. I think it's an offer to attract customers. This competitor has no customers in France, which is a small issue. For example, we have 40,000 French people calling GDF Suez every day about billing, advice, statements. We have 2,500 employees serving our 9 million customers. Who will take care of their customers and answer their questions? Having a contract means you can pick up the phone and get answers. You say service has a cost. I think service has a cost, and again it's a package of price, supply security, and service. As we enter winter, gas is sold in winter; you need to draw from storage to supply gas. If there are problems, the market is fine, but we also buy on the market, but not only. We have long-term contracts with major suppliers such as the Russians, Norwegians, Algerians because we must ensure long-term supply security for our customers. Long-term contracts are more secure but more expensive; short-term contracts are cheaper but more uncertain. The market is good—even in the regulated tariff formula, many French people are on it, 50% of the market. I think this 50-50 balance is not bad. You ask about the calculation of regulated tariffs? How? 50% of gas is bought on markets, 50% from long-term contracts. Long-term contracts are a bit more expensive now; they used to be cheaper. But I want to point out something: heating is always important because I also wonder, but gas only goes up? That was true; there were many increases in the past. Not true this year. We have lowered gas by 2% since the beginning of the year thanks to this new formula and contract renegotiation. For French people, heating with gas is still the cheapest solution. I give the figures from the energy ministry: about €1,200 per year for gas heating; €1,600 for oil heating; over €1,700 for electric heating. So heating with gas is the best solution for a French person today.

Well, no, these two things: first, I think GDF Suez's offers are so good that people don't want to leave us. But that's not entirely true. The gas market is much more open than the electricity market, especially for businesses, but also for households. We are still very happy to have nearly 9 out of 10 French people who have chosen us. Compared to the electricity market, which is completely closed except for us, we have many customers. Gas is much more open. And I think compared to telecoms, it's nothing alike. The energy concerns were perhaps less in consumers' minds, but above all, in the end, a good price, security, and service are what our fellow citizens want, and they are very happy with GDF Suez. I am delighted, and we will continue because we must never rest on our laurels. You'll see we will make more innovations. I can give you a scoop this morning: we see several possible options. Today I guarantee price stability for two years. I'm not offering 15% less, but I tell you that next year you will also have no increase. That's not bad.

Yes, well, about stocks: the main problem today, both for electricity and gas, is the peak period, the winter peak when everyone turns on their heating. Systems have become more fragile, so we must do everything. We ourselves are asking for a modification of the regulations on storage to better guarantee supply at the French and European level.