A strong signal for demand response, a key technology for the energy transition, and for France’s electrification pioneers
Paris, 15 June 2026 – For the second consecutive year, Voltalis has been named to the French Tech Next40/120. Awarded by the French government, the programme identifies the 120 highest-performing French companies with the potential to become world-leading technology players. The recognition reflects the position demand response now holds, in France and across Europe, as an essential lever of the energy transition. Through Voltalis, French Tech is contributing directly to France’s electrification.
A distinction that extends beyond Voltalis
The French Tech Next40/120 identifies companies on a credible path to becoming France’s next generation of unicorns. For Voltalis, it confirms that the technology developed in France twenty years ago answers a structural need now recognised worldwide: managing electricity demand in real time to secure power systems that are being reshaped by the electrification of energy use and the growth of intermittent renewable generation.
Electrification is accelerating. The grid is not keeping pace.
France has launched an ambitious electrification plan. It includes a ban on gas boilers in new-build properties from the end of 2026, support for heat pump deployment, and the expansion of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The underlying energy challenge is considerable. Peak demand will rise by 10% by 2030 from heat pump deployment alone. Without flexibility, this strain on the grid risks a higher incidence of power cuts, higher and more volatile electricity prices, and a slower transition to renewable energy.
One of Europe’s most powerful Virtual Power Plants
Voltalis has answered this challenge with an industrial and technological capability that is unique in Europe, built over twenty years of engineering. Its Virtual Power Plant is powered by the flexible consumption of more than 1.5 million connected devices across 300,000 buildings. Electric heaters, heat pumps and hot water tanks are controlled by proprietary algorithms that adjust electricity demand to the second in line with the needs of the grid, and do so without affecting user comfort. The activation capacity of this Virtual Power Plant is equivalent to the output of a nuclear reactor.
“The French Tech Next40/120 status confirms that the technology developed by Voltalis addresses one of the defining challenges of the energy transition: reconciling large-scale electrification with the security of the power grid,” said Mathieu Bineau, CEO of Voltalis. “This is the condition on which we will phase gas out of residential and commercial buildings and accelerate the deployment of heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points,” added Benjamin Bailly, Innovation Director at Voltalis.
Industrial ambitions equal to the challenge
Founded in France, Voltalis has operated in the United Kingdom, Spain, Finland and Sweden for the past two years and is running projects in five further countries. Its objective is to deploy 10 GW of demand response capacity by 2035, equivalent to the capacity of six latest-generation nuclear reactors.
The French Tech Next40/120 distinction confirms this position. Voltalis is not solely a high-potential company. It is the embodiment of a visionary French technology that now sits at the centre of European and global energy priorities.
Press contact :
| Voltalis: Emma Corson, PR & Corporate Communication Manager 07 60 89 81 89 emma.corson@voltalis.com |