Electricity purchase commitments mainly concern EDF and EDF Energy. In the case ofEDF many of these commitments are borne by the Island Energy Systems (SEI), which have made commitments to purchase the electricity generated using bagasse and coal.
In addition to the obligations reported above and under Article 10 of the Law of10 February 2000, in mainland France, EDF is obliged, at the producer’s request and subject to compliance with certain technical features, to purchase the power produced by co-generation plants and renewable energy generation units (wind turbines, small hydro-electric plants, photovoltaic power, etc.). The additional costs generated by this obligation are offset, after validation by the CRE, by the CSPE.These purchase obligations total 59TWh for 2020 (57TWh for 2019), including7TWh for co-generation (7TWh for 2019), 31TWh for wind power (30TWh for 2019), 11TWh for photovoltaic power (11TWh for 2019) and 4TWh for hydropower (3TWh for 2019).
Purchase commitments for other energies and commodities mainly concern coal and oil used to operate the fossil-fired plants, and purchases of biomass fuel used by Dalkia in the course of its business.
Commitments for purchases of nuclear fuel arise from supply contracts for the nuclear plants intended to cover the EDF group’s needs for uranium and fluoration, enrichment and fuel assembly production services.
Gas purchase commitments are principally undertaken by Edison and EDF. The volumes concerned for both entities at 31 December 2020 are as follows.
| 31/12/2020 | 31/12/2019 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maturity | |||||
(in billions of m3 ) | Total | < 1 year | 1 to 5 years | > 5 years | Total |
| Edison | Edison 31/12/2020124 | Edison 31/12/2019 12 | 44 | 68 | 135 |
| EDF | EDF 31/12/202026 | EDF 31/12/2019 2 | 8 | 16 | 24 |
Edison has entered into agreements to import natural gas from Russia, Libya, Algeria and Qatar, for a total maximum volume of 12.4 billion m3 per year. The residual terms of these contracts vary between 1 and 14 years.
The contract with Algeria was renewed in 2019 for 1 billion m3 per year until 2027.The long-term contract for gas from Russia terminated in 2019 and Edison signed anew contract for 1 billion m3 for 2020, then for 2021.
These contracts contain “take-or-pay” clauses committing the buyer to pay for a minimum volume of gas every year, whether or not it actually takes delivery of that volume. At 31 December 2020, off-balance sheet commitments relating to Edison’s take-or-pay clauses amount to €117 million, corresponding to the value of the volumes of gas not withdrawn at that date and for which delivery is deferred to a subsequent period.
EDF has entered into an import contract for LNG from the United States, concerning an annual supply of 0.7 million tonnes of LNG (1 billion m3 of natural gas per year)for a 20-year period beginning in May 2020.
In 2020, EDF signed a new 5-year contract for 3 billion m3 from Norway.
Under the contract with Terminale GNL Adriatico, Edison also benefits from approximately 80% of the terminal’s regasification capacities until 2034.
Under the contract with the Dunkerque LNG methane terminal, EDF benefits from approximately 61% of the terminal’s regasification capacities until 2037, in return for payment of an annual premium of approximately €150 million. A provision for onerous contracts has been recorded in connection with this contract.
Edison has signed two significant purchase contracts for gas from Azerbaijan(1 billion m3 per year), with deliveries scheduled to start in 2021, and LNG from theUnited States (1 million tonnes per year), with deliveries scheduled to start in 2023.
At 31 December 2020, these commitments mature as follows:
| 31/12/2020 | 31/12/2019 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maturity | |||||
(in millions of euros) | Total | < 1 year | 1 to 5 years | > 5 years | Total |
| Operating guarantees given | Operating guarantees given 31/12/20209,185 | Operating guarantees given 31/12/2019 2,320 | 2,711 | 4,154 | 7,349 |
| Operating purchase commitments(1) | Operating purchase commitments (1)31/12/20207,720 | Operating purchase commitments (1)31/12/2019 4,359 | 2,732 | 629 | 7,594 |
| Other operating commitments | Other operating commitments 31/12/2020246 | Other operating commitments 31/12/2019 92 | 87 | 67 | 305 |
| OPERATING CONTRACT PERFORMANCE COMMITMENTS GIVEN(2) | OPERATING CONTRACT PERFORMANCE COMMITMENTS GIVEN(2)31/12/202017,151 | OPERATING CONTRACT PERFORMANCE COMMITMENTS GIVEN(2) 31/12/2019 6,771 | 5,530 | 4,850 | 15,248 |
(1) Excluding fuel and energy.
(2) Including commitments given by controlled entities to joint ventures, amounting to €1,714 million at 31 December 2020 (€1,019 million at 31 December 2019).
In the course of its business, the Group provides contract performance guarantees, generally through the intermediary of banks.
Operating guarantees given at 31 December 2020 mainly consist of guarantees given by EDF, Edison and EDF Renewables in connection with its development projects.
The change in these guarantees is essentially explained by new EDF Renewables projects in development (particularly in the United States) and by the higher parent company guarantee given by EDF covering the differential between the value of UK pension obligations under the Trustees’ method and under IAS 19.
