Electricity is 16% cheaper than the European average, and gas is 8% more expensive: in France, an electric steam boiler is cost-effective below a specific price ratio. Here’s how to calculate it for your small business.<\/p>\n\n
In France, it\u2019s often said that nuclear power makes electrification a no-brainer. The reality is more nuanced and can be summed up in a single figure: the ratio between what you pay for a MWh of electricity and what you pay for a MWh of gas. Below a certain threshold, producing steam with electricity costs less than producing it with gas. Above that threshold, it doesn\u2019t. This article explains that threshold, the French average, and the factors that influence the outcome for a small business.<\/p>\n\n
According to statistics from the French ministry (SDES), French companies paid an average of 148.8 \u20ac\/MWh<\/strong> (excluding VAT) for electricity in 2025, 16%<\/strong> less than the European Union average. At the same time, their natural gas cost 65.7 \u20ac\/MWh PCS<\/strong>, 8%<\/strong> more than the European average.<\/p>\n\n No major neighboring industrialized country combines such competitive electricity prices with such expensive natural gas. But the average ratio remains around 2.3<\/strong>: a MWh of electricity still costs more than twice as much as a MWh of natural gas.<\/p>\n\n An electric resistance boiler converts about 99%<\/strong> of the electricity into steam. A gas boiler loses energy through flue gases, blowdowns, shutdowns, and startups. Furthermore, gas is billed based on PCS, while efficiency ratings are reported in PCI, resulting in a difference of about 10<\/strong> %.<\/p>\n\n The formula is simple:<\/p>\n\n Threshold = 0.99 \u00f7 (actual PCI efficiency of your gas boiler \u00d7 0.90)<\/p>\n\n If your electricity-to-gas ratio is below your threshold, each metric ton of steam costs less when using the electric boiler.<\/p>\n\n For an SME, the published order of magnitude figures are approximately 205 \u20ac\/MWh<\/strong> for electricity (20 to 499 MWh\/year) and \u20ac86\/MWh PCS<\/strong> for gas (278 to 2,778 MWh\/year), which is a ratio of about 2.4<\/strong>. Let\u2019s be honest: at that level, in a boiler room operating continuously, gas is still cheaper per MWh. The question is what lowers your ratio or raises your threshold.<\/p>\n\n Yes, when your electricity-to-gas price ratio is below your threshold, which ranges from 1.2<\/strong> to 1.7<\/strong> depending on the actual efficiency of your gas boiler. CEE subsidies, the reduced excise tax, and time-of-use pricing bring that threshold closer.<\/p>\n\n Most SMEs\u2019 needs range from a few kW to 180 kW<\/strong>, or up to about 250 kg\/h<\/strong> of steam. This is the range covered by our NGV line.<\/p>\n\n It depends on the contracted power and the available margin. That’s the first thing we check in a study.<\/p>\n\n Send us your two most recent electricity and gas bills and your steam requirements: we\u2019ll calculate your ratio, your threshold, and the appropriate sizing. Giconmes has been manufacturing electric steam boilers since 1957.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Electricity is 16% cheaper than the European average, and gas is 8% more expensive: in France, an electric steam boiler is cost-effective below a specific price ratio. Here’s how to calculate it for your small business. In France, it\u2019s often said that nuclear power makes electrification a no-brainer. The reality is more nuanced and can […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":25076,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sin-categorizar"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25080","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25080"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25080\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25081,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25080\/revisions\/25081"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25076"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/giconmes.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The threshold: between 1.2 and 1.7, depending on your current boiler<\/h2>\n\n
Actual Efficiency of the Gas Boiler (PCI)<\/th> Typical scenario<\/th> Threshold ratio<\/th><\/tr><\/thead> 90%<\/td> New boiler, stable output<\/td> 1.22<\/td><\/tr> 85%<\/td> Proper boiler, variable load<\/td> 1.29<\/td><\/tr> 75%<\/td> Old or oversized boiler<\/td> 1.47<\/td><\/tr> 65%<\/td> Intermittent demand, short cycles, long steam network<\/td> 1.69<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n Calculate your ratio in two minutes<\/h2>\n\n
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Five factors that change the calculation<\/h2>\n\n
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Cases in which the utility company is already profitable today<\/h2>\n\n
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Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n\n
Is an electric steam boiler cost-effective in France in 2026?<\/h3>\n\n
How much power does an SME need?<\/h3>\n\n
Do you need to upgrade the electrical service?<\/h3>\n\n
Your ratio, calculated for free<\/h2>\n\n