Major French Companies Unite to Rekindle Shale Gas Debate

"In France, we do not have oil, but we have ideas"

That famous advertising slogan, sponsored by the French government during the 1970s after the major oil crisis, may be not so true today. 

France does possess considerable non-conventional resources such as shale gas and shale oil in its territory according to the United States Energy Information Agency, however no detailed underground investigations have been made so far. Widespread public protests saw the banning of the process of hydraulic fracturing or fracking by the administration of Nicolas Sarkozy in 2011and the repeal of three licenses granted in March 2010 for shale gas exploration to Total SA and Schuepbach Energy. 

Last week, up to 20 French corporations announced the creation of the Non-Conventional Hydrocarbons Center (CHNC), a joint effort to revive the shale gas debate across the country.  Oil and gas companies such as Total, GDZ Suez joined with others members from the energy sector including Technip, Air Liquide, Vallourec and Arkema.

A fact-based approach

The goal of this new organization is to provide information to a wide audience based on real facts regardless of any political or ideological consideration.

“The CHNC is a documentation and information centre. We want to explain the different kinds of non-conventional resources, the energy revolution and its global impact, the technics used abroad”, Jean-Louis Schilansky told. The director of the CHNC.

The current leader of Paris MEDEF, the main employer’s organization in France, Schilansky promises to address the environmental issues as well. “We will analyze the potential damages on the environment, taking stock of the solutions. To be fair, I do not know if fracking is really bad for the environment. Nothing will be hidden“. The works will be judged by a panel of nine independent experts from the Academy of Sciences, Medicine and even the highly respected National Centre of Scientific Research.

Schilansky sees investigations as logical: "We do not know if the natural gas resources are significant in the French soil. It may be huge. Nobody can make a real prediction."         

This latest initiative could easily be seen as a move from the oil industry to put pressure on the French government and lawmakers but the CHNC director denies this assertion. “We are not creating an energy lobby to force the government to act in a specific way and pass a bill. We are going to provide information to elected officials so we can debate on the issues. We are not coming with claims or proposals”. 

Political challenges

Facing energy price challenges, there have been calls for the development of France's shale prospects to be reconsidered. Cheap shale gas has provided for an economic resurgence in the United States, resulting in a shake up the petrochemical industry worldwide. Despite pressure to reverse his policy against shale gas exploration, the French President François Hollande reiterated that there would not be shale oil and shale gas exploration: "As long as I am president, there will be no exploration for shale gas in France."

In late December, Energy Minister Segolene Royal restated the government's stance by refusing to extend some research permits in the south West of France near Toulouse. “I assert that the requirements needed are not fulfilled to renew permits”, the Minister said.

Hollande's position has the wide support on this issue, with 62% of the public is opposed to fracking according to an opinion poll released in early October. 

Meanwhile former president Nicolas Sarkozy who is mulling another bid for the presidency, said publicly he is in favor of exploring natural gas resources. Fracking could become an issue on the campaign trail come 2017 in a country with a 10% unemployment rate and a challenged recovery.

Kevin Bonnaud