Enedis and ABB renew framework agreement to accelerate France’s SF6-free grid transition

  Posted by: electime      27th October 2025

Enedis, France’s largest distribution system operator (DSO), has renewed its framework agreement with ABB to continue modernizing the country’s electricity networks. The five-year deal, which can be extended to eight years, reflects the strength of the long-standing partnership between the two companies and Enedis’ ambition to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its medium-voltage network infrastructure. The contract was signed and initiated in the third quarter of 2025. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Modern energy solutions – including rooftop solar panels, heat pumps, local energy communities, electric vehicles, and wind and solar energy installations – are driving Europe’s transition away from fossil fuels. These modern energy solutions are at the same time also increasing demand on energy infrastructure, with EU electricity consumption projected to rise by 60 per cent between 2023 and 2030. This acceleration places new pressure on distribution grids, highlighting the need to expand partnerships that will support grid expansion both in scale and technology.

In 2017, much ahead of the regulation, Enedis committed to phasing out sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆), a greenhouse gas over 24,000 times more potent than CO₂, from its medium-voltage (MV) switchgear.

That same year, ABB and Enedis worked together to pioneer SF₆-free alternatives. The partnership led to the first installation of air-insulated switchgear, Unisec V500 (a customized variant of Unisec Air) embedding vacuum circuit breakers in 2021. Since then, the technology has been validated and incorporated into Enedis’ wider network to support new solutions with SF₆ gas alternatives in grid switchgear.

Hervé Champenois, Chief Technical Officer of Enedis, commented: “This renewed agreement with ABB reflects our shared ambition to reduce environmental impact and support the decarbonization of the grid while modernizing and expanding capacity. By working with partners that share our values, we can make the French electricity system more resilient for the future.”

Under the renewed framework, ABB will continue providing the field-proven SF₆-free solution, ensuring the innovation co-developed by both companies can now be deployed at a greater scale to support France’s energy transition.

“This agreement highlights the strong collaboration between Enedis and ABB over the past several years,” said Andrea Estrada Hein, Executive Vice President, Switchgear Business Line, Distribution Solutions, ABB. “As electrification accelerates and demand on the grid grows, partnerships like this will be essential to ensure Europe’s energy transition is both reliable and sustainable.”

The companies will continue focusing on improving product environmental performance, embedding eco-design into future modifications, and establishing clear progress plans for reducing carbon emissions and improving energy efficiency. The partners are also introducing a take-back program for retiring SF₆-based equipment, helping to accelerate the transition to a circular economy in the grid sector.

SF₆ is part of a group of chemicals known as fluorinated gases, or F-gases, which are among the most potent greenhouse gases.