The impact of the riots in France have reached Paris 2024

The multisectoral and repeated protests in different parts of France against the advanced pension reform project touched Paris 2024 closely, as the Olympic Village and the Stade de France suffered intentional power and gas cuts materialized by employees in the energy sector.

Both facilities, located in the Saint-Denis neighborhood in northern Paris, suffered a measure of force whose purpose is to get the government of Emmanuel Macron and the Senate to reverse their decision to delay the minimum retirement age from 62 to 64 years from 2030 and from 42 to 43 the years of contributions to receive a full pension, from 2027. In the town, numerous businesses and private homes were also affected.

As for the Olympic Village, the shortage of electricity interrupted the course of construction by the company Solideo, almost 500 days away from the launch of the Games. The site, which is sustainable in nature, equipped with state-of-the-art technologies and which will house more than 14,000 people, is one of the few that has yet to go a long way towards its completion. The works are expected to be completed only at the beginning of next year and not during 2023 as stipulated, as long as there are no further delays in the import of steel, an industry weakened by the war in Ukraine.

For its part, the prejudice to the detriment of the Stade de France, which also occurred during the general strike, was denied by the electricity supply network, Enedis, which assured that the supply was never cut off. The emblematic Parisian colossus, the largest in the country with capacity for 77,083 spectators according to the Paris 2024 organization, will host the athletics and rugby sevens events.

Sebastien Menesplier, head of the energy sector of the General Confederation of Labour, called on the Macron government to “withdraw the reform” so that electricians and gas operators can resume their tasks “for the public service and the general interest”. In addition, another mass demonstration is scheduled for next Wednesday that could disrupt the Olympic facilities again.

Another news related to electricity in the Olympic Village that is still causing a stir is the absence of air conditioners in the rooms. One way out proposed by some delegations is to bring their own air or fans to air conditioning the rooms during a northern summer of 2024 that could present new heat waves. In this regard, the mayor of Paris, Ana María Hidalgo, expressed her opposition to the placement of temporary equipment, which leaves the debate open and the definitive solution pending.