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Agnès Pannier-Runacher

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Agnès Pannier-Runacher
Pannier-Runacher in 2023
Minister of Ecological Transition, Energy, Climate and Risk Prevention
Assumed office
21 September 2024
Prime MinisterMichel Barnier
Preceded byChristophe Béchu
Minister Delegate to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
In office
8 February 2024 – 21 September 2024
Prime MinisterGabriel Attal
MinisterMarc Fesneau
Member of the National Assembly
for Pas-de-Calais's 2nd constituency
Assumed office
18 July 2024
Preceded byJacqueline Maquet
Minister for Energy Transition
In office
20 May 2022 – 11 January 2024
Prime MinisterÉlisabeth Borne
Preceded bySégolène Royal (as Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy)
Succeeded byRoland Lescure (as Minister Delegate for Industry and Energy)
Minister Delegate for Industry
In office
6 July 2020 – 20 May 2022
Prime MinisterJean Castex
Élisabeth Borne
MinisterBruno Le Maire
Preceded byChristophe Sirugue
Succeeded byRoland Lescure
Secretary of State for Economy and Finance
In office
16 October 2018 – 6 July 2020
Prime MinisterÉdouard Philippe
Jean Castex
MinisterBruno Le Maire
Preceded byDelphine Gény-Stephann
Personal details
Born
Agnès Runacher

(1974-06-19) 19 June 1974 (age 50)
Paris, France
Political partyRenaissance (2022–present)
Other political
affiliations
Territories of Progress (2020–2022)
SpouseMarc Pannier (div. 2022)
Domestic partnerNicolas Bays (2023–present)
Children3
Alma materHEC Paris
Sciences Po, ÉNA

Agnès Pannier-Runacher (French pronunciation: [aɲɛs panje ʁynaʃe]; born 19 June 1974; née Agnès Runacher) is a French business executive and politician of La République En Marche! (LREM) who has been serving as State Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture in the government of Prime Minister Gabriel Attal.[1]

Pannier-Runacher previously was Minister for Energy Transition in the government of Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne from 2022 to 2024[2] and Secretary of State for Economy and Finance in the governments of successive Prime Ministers Édouard Philippe and Jean Castex from 2018 to 2022.

Early life and education

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Pannier-Runacher was born in Paris, Ile-de-France on 19 June 1974. Her father was an executive at Perenco, an oil-and-gas company.[3] She is a graduate of HEC Paris (1995), Sciences Po and the École nationale d'administration (ENA), where her classmates included Alexis Kohler.[4] She describes her family's political outlook as "centre-left".[5]

Civil service career

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Pannier-Runacher joined the French Civil Service in 2000. She first worked at the Inspection générale des finances and then joined the Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris in a managerial role from 2003 to 2006.[6] In 2006 she joined the Caisse des dépôts et consignations as deputy director in charge of strategy and finances. In 2009 she became executive director of the Strategic Investment Fund.[7]

Business career

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Pannier-Runacher joined the private company Faurecia in 2011. In 2013 she became deputy director at the Compagnie des Alpes in charge of development and performance of skiing and leisure centers.[7]

Political career

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Pannier-Runacher was an early supporter of Emmanuel Macron during the 2017 French presidential election and is a member of the La République En Marche! party.[8] Pannier-Runacher was a candidate in the 16th arrondissement of Paris in the 2020 municipal elections but was ultimately defeated.[9] In early 2021, she announced her candidacy in that year's elections for the Regional Council of Hauts-de-France.[10] In January 2022, Pannier-Runacher and Élisabeth Moreno jointly published a book on feminism.[11] She was elected as the member of the National Assembly for the Pas-de-Calais's 2nd constituency in the 2024 legislative election, succeeding Jacqueline Maquet.[12]

Secretary of State for Economy and Finance

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Pannier-Runacher was appointed as Secretary of State for Economy and Finance, serving under the leadership of minister Bruno Le Maire, on 16 October 2018.[13][14] At the time of her appointment, she was the highest-paid official to join the government, earning more than €500,00 per year.[15]

Early in her tenure, Pannier-Runacher oversaw the 2.8 billion euros auction of 5G frequencies conducted by French regulator ARCEP in October 2020.[16]

During the COVID-19 pandemic in France, Pannier-Runacher was put in charge of organizing and reinforcing the production and supply of materials for health care personnel and institutions, such as respirators, personal protective equipment and swabs. She also oversaw the ramp-up of the production of face masks in France.[17]

She resisted calls from opposition figures such as Jean-Luc Mélenchon and Marine Le Pen, as well as the General Confederation of Labour to nationalise a factory which manufactured oxygen cylinders located in Gerzat, Puy-de-Dôme. Workers continued to maintain the equipment despite its closure in 2019 and had occupied the factory since January 2020, accusing Luxfer of intentionally creating a shortage by closing down the last oxygen cylinder manufacturing factory in Europe.[18] Pannier-Runacher argued that the factory was not considered for nationalisation as it had no strategic value in the context of health independence.[19]

She was promoted on 6 July 2020 under the new government of Jean Castex, attaining the status of minister as Minister Delegate for Industry, a newly created position which replaced that of the Secretary of State under the purview of the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

She led the French inter-ministerial task force participating in the negotiation for the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines.[20]

Minister for Energy Transition

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She was appointed Minister for Energy Transition under the Borne government on 20 May 2022. Her appointed was met with criticism over her lack of experience in the area under the purview of the ministry, as well as her family's ties with Perenco, the second-largest oil-and-gas company in France.

Pannier-Runacher launched an alliance of nuclear power-supporting European Union countries in March 2023 amid conflict with Germany over whether low-carbon hydrogen produced from nuclear plants should be considered equal to the hydrogen produced by renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and hydropower by the EU.[21][22]

In October 2023, Pannier-Runacher participated in the first joint cabinet retreat of the German and French governments in Hamburg, chaired by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Emmanuel Macron to settle differences relating to energy, industrial, and defence policies.[23][24] One week later, the twenty-seven countries in the European Union reached an agreement to reform the European electricity market that had been hindered by Franco-German disagreements. The French government claims that the agreement will allow Électricité de France to build the six EPR nuclear reactors that had been announced in February 2022.[25]

Minister Delegate to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty

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She was appointed Minister Delegate to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty Marc Fesneau on 8 February 2024 in the Attal government.[26]

Other activities

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  • Elis, Independent Member of the Board of Directors (2014–2018)[27]
  • Bourbon, Independent Member of the Board of Directors (2009–2018)[28]

Personal life

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Pannier-Runacher is in a relationship with Nicolas Bays, a former Socialist MP and longtime Macron supporter.[29] She has three children.[4][30]

In 2021, Pannier-Runacher moved to Lens, Pas-de-Calais, into a property rented by Bays from an estate company controlled by heirs of the late Olivier Dassault since 2017.[3]

References

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  1. ^ Victor Goury-Laffont (8 February 2024), Macron completes painstaking reshuffle with EU affairs, health, energy appointments Politico Europe.
  2. ^ GV De Clercq (20 May 2022), French outgoing industry minister Pannier-Runacher to become energy minister, BFM reports Reuters.
  3. ^ a b Elisa Braun and Alexandre Léchenet (10 November 2022), French minister in hot water over ties with defense giant Dassault Politico Europe.
  4. ^ a b Retour à Bercy pour Agnès Pannier-Runacher, après 15 ans de carrière entre public et privé Le Point, 16 October 2018.
  5. ^ "Agnès Pannier-Runacher, de la Compagnie des Alpes à Bercy". Le Figaro (in French). 2018-10-16. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  6. ^ Maël Thierry and Morgane Bertrand (20 May 2022), 10 choses à savoir sur Agnès Pannier-Runacher, nouvelle ministre de la Transition énergétique L'Obs.
  7. ^ a b Cardoni, Fabien; Carré de Malberg, Nathalie; Margairaz, Michel, eds. (2012). "Pannier-Runacher, Agnès Charlotte Jeanne". Dictionnaire historique des inspecteurs des finances (1801–2009): dictionnaire biographique et thématique. Paris: Comité pour l'histoire économique et financière de la France. pp. 855–856. ISBN 978-2-11-097521-8.
  8. ^ "Agnès Pannier-Runacher, de la Compagnie des Alpes à Bercy". Le Figaro. 16 October 2018.
  9. ^ Sarah Paillou (17 January 2020), Municipales à Paris : la ministre Agnès Pannier-Runacher annonce sa "candidature dans le 16e arrondissement" Le Journal du Dimanche.
  10. ^ Elisa Braun, Pauline de Saint Remy and Clea Caulcutt (26 May 2021) French minister's relationship with staffer casts shadow over election run Politico Europe.
  11. ^ Juliette Demay and Sarah Paillou (8 January 2022), Elisabeth Moreno et Agnès Pannier-Runacher au JDD : "Les femmes ne demandent pas l'aumône" Archived 2022-03-05 at the Wayback Machine Le Journal du Dimanche.
  12. ^ "Résultats des élections législatives 2024 dans le Pas-de-Calais". Le Monde.fr (in French). Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  13. ^ "Agnès Pannier-Runacher". Le portail des ministères économiques et financiers.
  14. ^ BFMTV. "Agnès Pannier-Runacher, nommée secrétaire d'État auprès du ministre de l'Économie et des Finances". BFMTV.
  15. ^ Vincent Jauvert (23 October 2018), Agnès Pannier-Runacher, la secrétaire d'Etat qui gagnait plus de 500.000 euros par an L'Obs.
  16. ^ John Irish (6 June 2020), France wants 5G auction in September, junior minister tells Le Figaro Reuters.
  17. ^ Marius Bocquet (20 May 2022), Nouveau gouvernement : Agnès Pannier-Runacher, une technicienne passée de l'Industrie à la Transition énergétique Le Figaro.
  18. ^ "La nationalisation de Luxfer, usine de bouteilles à oxygène, de plus en plus réclamée". Le HuffPost (in French). 2020-03-24. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  19. ^ "Coronavirus : Luxfer "ne figure pas sur la liste" des entreprises à nationaliser - France Bleu". ici par France Bleu et France 3 (in French). 2020-04-18. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  20. ^ "Agnès Pannier-Runacher : « Nous aurons peut-être de meilleurs prix que les Américains pour le vaccin anti-Covid »". Les Echos (in French). 2020-11-22. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  21. ^ "Hydrogène : clash au sommet entre la France, l'Allemagne et l'Espagne". Les Echos (in French). 2023-02-09. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  22. ^ "La France lance une « alliance » du nucléaire en Europe". Les Echos (in French). 2023-02-28. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  23. ^ Sarah Marsh and Andreas Rinke (9 October 2023), Germany, France hold unprecedented cabinet retreat to oil creaky EU motor Reuters.
  24. ^ Erste deutsch-französische Kabinettsklausur: Zukunftsfragen und Weltpolitik diskutiert Cabinet of Germany, press release of 10 October 2023.
  25. ^ Dole, Damien; Féraud, Jean-Christophe. "Marché de l'électricité européen : les 27 pays de l'UE parviennent à un accord". Libération (in French). Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  26. ^ Carroy, Chrystelle (2024-02-13). "Agnès Pannier-Runacher, ministre déléguée à l'Agriculture avec des attributions liées à la forêt". www.forestopic.com (in French). Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  27. ^ Marine Pennetier and Myriam Rivet (8 January 2019), Agnès Pannier-Runacher se voit retirer certains dossiers Reuters.
  28. ^ Loris Boichot (8 January 2019), Conflits d'intérêts : des attributions retirées à la secrétaire d'État Agnès Pannier-Runacher Le Figaro.
  29. ^ Elisa Braun, Pauline de Saint Remy and Clea Caulcutt (May 26, 2021) French minister's relationship with staffer casts shadow over election run Politico Europe.
  30. ^ Mariana Grépinet (13 May 2020), Les ministres impatients de remettre leurs enfants à l’école Paris Match.