French Energy Minister Segolene Royal said Tuesday that it was time to consider replacing the country's aging nuclear power plants with newer facilities.
With the industry at a post-Fukushima Daiichi crossroads, the comments sent stock markets a signal that France does not intend to retreat entirely from nuclear power, even while the parliament is considering a bill that would reduce the country's dependence on the energy source from 75 percent to 50 percent.
"We must now also programme the construction of a new generation of reactors, which will replace old plants when these cannot be renovated anymore,” Royal said in an interview.
Stocks at French nuclear power giant EDF climbed 5.6 percent after the comments went public.
About half of the 58 active reactors in France will hit the 40-year mark for operations in the 2020s, Reuters reported.