The final quarter of 2008 was characterized by a dogged continuation in near-term gas plant development and longer-term nuclear development. With non-recourse finance hard to come by and developers happy to sit on their hands while capital costs decline, new plant development in Europe has slowed, but deals are still possible, renewable energy subsidies still available and utilities still facing capacity margin decline.rnThis has been particularly apparent in France during an exceptional cold snap in early January. French electricity consumption hit a new record on January 6, the second day in a row, with demand at 91,500 MW at 1900 CET in the evening, breaking the record of 90,200 MW set the day before.
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