When a data center site is presented to an investor in France, the grid claim usually comes down to one sentence: the site has grid. Behind that sentence sits one of three RTE documents, and they do not commit the same thing. One is an estimate. One reserves capacity, but only once it has been accepted. One is a contract. The difference between them can be several years on the energisation date, and sometimes the difference between a project and no project.
1. THE EXPLORATORY STUDY: AN ESTIMATE, NOT A RESERVATION
The exploratory study is optional. RTE delivers it in about six weeks, with a first view of feasibility, cost and connection timeline. It is useful for screening sites. It does not bind RTE, gives the project no place in the queue and reserves no capacity. Another project can request and secure the same capacity the following month.
A site whose grid claim rests on an exploratory study has a hypothesis, not a connection. Its date is an order of magnitude.
2. THE PTF: A RESERVATION, ONCE ACCEPTED
The technical and financial proposal (proposition technique et financière, PTF) is RTE's formal connection offer: solution, works, cost, indicative timeline. The key point is often misunderstood: a project enters the queue, and its capacity is reserved, only when the developer accepts the PTF, not when it receives it. Acceptance requires the signed specific conditions without reservation, proof of land control (a promise to sell is often enough at this stage), payment of the first instalment, and evidence that the project is progressing, or instead a flat fee of €1,000 per MW.
This matters because RTE draws up each PTF taking into account only the PTFs already accepted in the area. Several competing projects can therefore hold offers for the same capacity. The order in which they accept decides who keeps it. A PTF received but not accepted is a strong signal, not a reservation.
Even once accepted, a PTF can be lost. A significant change to the project, such as a new connection point or a different power level, requires a new PTF and a new place in the queue. The PTF also lapses if the connection agreement that follows is not accepted within the deadline set by the procedure.
3. THE CONNECTION AGREEMENT: THE CONTRACT
After the PTF, RTE proposes the connection agreement (convention de raccordement). It reflects the detailed studies and the administrative procedures needed for the grid works. The developer accepts it by signing and paying the advance on the works set out in its payment schedule. It is the document that fixes the scope, the cost, the schedule and, where relevant, the ramp-up of contracted capacity by stages.
This is the document a lender can build a model on. Even then, the date depends on events outside the developer's control, notably the permits for RTE's own works and any upstream reinforcement.
| Document | Queue position | What the date means | Can it be lost? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exploratory study | None | An order of magnitude | Nothing is held |
| PTF received | None yet | Indicative, depends on acceptance | Yes, to a competing project that accepts first |
| PTF accepted | Yes, capacity reserved | Indicative, refined by detailed studies | Yes, if the project changes or the agreement is not accepted in time |
| Connection agreement signed | Yes | Contractual schedule | Rarely, but the date still depends on grid works permits |
AFTER ACCEPTANCE: KEEPING THE PLACE
A queue position is reviewed every year, on the anniversary of queue entry. The project must again show progress, or pay the €1,000 per MW fee (at most twice), and, if land control rested on a promise, show that it still holds it. Since June 2024, the process can only be suspended if the project's permits are challenged in court or refused; since 29 June 2026, this also applies to projects that entered the queue earlier. Three months before the connection agreement is sent, the developer must prove its permits are granted and justify the requested capacity. If the permitted capacity is lower, RTE can reduce the connection capacity.
CAN A PTF BE SOLD?
Not freely any more. Since 29 June 2024, a PTF can only be transferred to a company in the same group as the applicant, through an amendment signed by RTE, the transferor and the transferee, and similar limits apply to the connection agreement. An investor buying a project "with its grid connection" is in practice buying the company that holds the PTF, and should check which version of RTE's general conditions governs it. All terms are defined in our French grid connection glossary. Once connected, unused capacity is not secure either: for agreements signed since 1 August 2025, RTE can reduce the capacity of a site that durably draws less than contracted (French Energy Code, article L. 342-24).
THE SAME QUESTION ON THE ENEDIS SIDE
Below the transmission level, Enedis uses its own procedure and vocabulary, but the investor's question is identical: has the offer been accepted, and is there a signed agreement? For projects near the 40 MW threshold, it is also worth checking which operator will actually connect the site.
WHAT TO ASK BEFORE TRUSTING A FRENCH SITE
Proof of PTF acceptance and of the related payment
The signed connection agreement and its payment schedule, if it exists
The contracted capacity by stage: is the full power available on the stated date, or only a first step?
The works that condition the date: RTE permits, reinforcements, other projects in the area
If the project changes hands: which company holds the PTF, and can it follow?
A date on an exploratory study is a hypothesis. The same date on a signed connection agreement is a commitment, still exposed to the permits for the grid works. Between the two lies most of the execution risk investors are asked to price. Our guide to reviewing a connection offer covers what to check inside the document itself.
Sources: RTE connection procedures for consumption installations on the transmission grid (Documentation Technique de Référence), CRE deliberations 2024-96, 2024-229 and 2026-32, French Energy Code (article L. 342-24), and the analysis by law firm Orrick published by DatacenterDynamics (August 2026). The procedure is updated regularly; the version applicable to a given project is the one in force when its request was filed. This article is general information, not legal advice.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does an RTE exploratory study reserve grid capacity?
No. It is an optional, non-binding estimate of feasibility, cost and timeline, delivered in about six weeks. It gives no place in the queue.
When does a data center project enter RTE's queue?
When the developer accepts its technical and financial proposal (PTF), with proof of land control, evidence of project progress and a payment towards study costs. Receiving a PTF is not enough.
Can an RTE PTF be transferred to a buyer?
Since 29 June 2024, only to a company in the same group as the applicant, through an amendment signed with RTE. Buying a project with its connection in practice means buying the company that holds the PTF.
Which French grid document can a lender rely on?
The signed connection agreement (convention de raccordement), which sets scope, cost and schedule. An accepted PTF reserves capacity but its dates remain indicative.