France Suspends Shale Gas Activities

The French government has suspended the work on shale gas exploration at least until the summer.

Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, the Minister for Ecology announced yesterday the creation of a mission to "assess the environmental issues" of shale gas. "No permission to work on shale gas will be released or even educated before the outcome of this mission," she said.   (Read More HERE)

The minister said that a progress report would be made in April and the final report was expected in June

France has awarded three shale gas exploration licenses in March to Total SA, Schuepbach Energy, and GDF Suez. These licenses cover more than 10 000 km2 on the departments of Hérault, Aveyron, Lozère, Ardèche and Drôme.

The government was responding to calls by elected officials and environmental groups worried about the impact of a possible operation of such gases on the aquifers, water needs and the impact on the landscape.

Total estimated the awarded area could contain resources of up to 2,380 billion cubic meters of gas, 10 to 20 times the annual gas consumption in France.