France's 2019 Law on Climate and Energy provides an update to the requirements set out in its 2015 Energy Transition Law, which covered only climate objectives in non-financial reporting by investors. The new 2019 law also takes into account "the preservation of the biodiversity of the ecosystems and the natural resources, in particular the participation in the objective of zero net artificialisation and the use of renewable energy."
Article 29 of the law on Energy and Climate provides details on expected disclosures across both biodiversity and climate. It requires financial institutions to publish information on the portion of their assets complying with the environmental criteria set out in the EU Taxonomy.
In addition, the Law on Climate and Energy sets the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, decreasing fossil energy consumption by 40 percent by 2030, and reducing the share of nuclear power in electricity production to 50 percent by 2035. It also includes plans for closing the country's last four coal plants by 2022 as well as various measures to support the development of renewable energy—hydrogen, photovoltaic, and offshore wind.
In May 2021, a decree implementing the Article 29 requires all financial institutions to disclose biodiversity-related risks and climate-rlated risks, using the concept of double materiality. Financial institutions will also have to disclose their strategy for reducing biodiversity impacts. They must include specific targets and a measure of alignment with international biodiversity goals.