Renewable Energies: Tender Selection Now Based on Price

A decree published in the Journal officiel de la République française on October 22, 2026, rewrites the tie-breaking rules for calls for tenders for renewable energy production facilities. Decree No. 2026-976 of October 20, 2026 (NOR: ECOR2614686D) inserts a mechanism for new price proposals, or even a lottery, into the energy code, and expands the calculation bases for the remuneration supplement. The text falls under the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial, Energy and Digital Sovereignty, whose minister is responsible for its execution.

The publication appears in JORF No. 0247 of October 22, 2026. The decree modifies three regulatory articles of the energy code: Article R. 311-21, Article R. 311-22-1 — through the insertion of a new Article R. 311-22-2 — and Article R. 311-27-7. It does not create a new competitive bidding procedure: the system is based on the examination of offers already entrusted to the Energy Regulatory Commission by Article R. 311-22.

A new price proposal to break ties

The new Article R. 311-22-2 opens an unprecedented, but optional, tie-breaking path. It only applies in one specific case: competitive bidding procedures in which candidates do not choose the project’s installation zone, and provided that the procedure’s specifications have provided for the mechanism.

The adopted scheme is as follows:

• several offers receive the same score on all rating criteria after examination by the Energy Regulatory Commission;
• the minister in charge of energy may then propose to all these candidates, and them alone, to submit a new proposal to the Commission;
• this proposal relates solely to the price, must be lower than the one already proposed, and replaces it;
• the offer from the candidate who proposed the lowest price is ranked first.

The mechanism can be repeated until the offers are effectively tied-broken.

The lottery as a last resort

The decree explicitly provides for the scenario where the repetition(s) are not sufficient. In this case, the minister in charge of energy may decide that the selected offer will be the one designated by lottery. The text specifies neither a maximum number of rounds nor the material modalities of the draw, which refers back to the specifications of each procedure.

A remuneration supplement calculated on expanded bases

Article 3 replaces the last sentence of Article R. 311-27-7 of the energy code. The calculation of the remuneration supplement may now be based notably on:

• the volumes of electricity actually produced;
• the production capacity of the installation;
• the production of a reference installation as defined in the specifications of the competitive bidding procedure.

The text adds a data component: the production data of the installation and, where applicable, any other data necessary for invoicing are communicated to the producer under the conditions mentioned in articles R. 314-43 to R. 314-46. They may be used for the purpose of invoicing the remuneration supplement when the contractual terms so provide.

Representation of candidates and application to ongoing procedures

Article 1 amends article R. 311-21: the second sentence is deleted and a second paragraph specifies that candidates are represented by their proxy or, when they have formed a company for the implementation of the project, by that company, for the conclusion of the purchase agreement with the electricity buyer or the remuneration supplement agreement with the company EDF.

Article 4 governs the application over time: the new wordings of articles R. 311-21, R. 311-22-2, and R. 311-27-7 apply to tender procedures ongoing on the date the decree enters into force. For article R. 311-21 alone, they also apply to projects for which a successful candidate has already been designated, but for which the remuneration supplement agreement mentioned in 2° of article L. 311-12 of the energy code had not yet been concluded by that date.

Scope for project developers

For wind and photovoltaic developers engaged in procedures already launched, the change is immediate: the specifications can now compel them to a downward bid on price alone in the event of a perfect tie, up to a draw that would decide the award. The modification of the calculation of the remuneration supplement and the new representation regime for the signing of contracts with EDF impact, for their part, the economics of the winning projects at the time of their contractual closing.

Source: Decree No. 2026-976 of October 20, 2026, NOR: ECOR2614686D, JORF No. 0247 of October 22, 2026.