Climate Change Mitigation and the Implications for the French Energy Sector

Abstract

This paper discusses the impacts that mitigation guidelines presented by the UN and its bodies have on the energy sector within France in a variety of aspects including the impacts on business procedures, changes in revenues and changes in emissions by firms. Background on the UN-organized climate conferences (Conferences of the Parties) and agreements (Kyoto Protocol, Paris Agreement) as well as the implications and history of climate change are also included. The paper examines the historical situation of the French energy sector; two individual firms with different business strategies in the sector within France are later analyzed with respect to the timing of the different climate agreements set out by the UN and participating governments. Potential decisions of managers facing challenges in the two firms are discussed from multiple angles with following implications. France is compared to other nations and the global average in CO2 emissions in which timing with global conferences and agreements is analyzed. What the future of the planet is dependent on and who has the power to influence it is also explored.