London (Platts)--12Dec2012/844 am EST/1344 GMT

France's Green party has proposed to parliament a law which extends the nation's ban on shale oil and gas exploration to all drilling methods, Green party MP Francois-Michel Lambert said in a statement Wednesday.

The question of whether France should mine its significant shale gas potential is high on the agenda of a national debate on energy which will frame 2013 policy decisions.

"It is time to definitively close the door on non-conventional hydrocarbon [drilling]" said Lambert, proponent of the draft law.

This is something the Socialist government has not been willing to do, instead choosing to outlaw hydraulic fracturing, the current commercial form of drilling for shale, based on health and environmental concerns.

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Energy minister Delphine Batho has made it clear that shale gas exploration cannot take place until it can be proven safe for citizens and the environment.

However, there is much call from the energy sector for continuing research in shale drilling and the French government is looking to improve the competitiveness of its important industrial base. Domestic shale gas would lower prices as well as bolster national energy security.

The government has launched a long-running national debate on its "energy transition" in which it has ambitious plans to reduce the share of nuclear power from 75% to 50% by 2025.

Batho was quick to dampen speculation of a policy change in July, which came after industry minister Arnaud Montebourg said the government would review the shale gas "dossier" while it plans its long-term energy transition away from nuclear power.

At an annual energy forum in Paris Tuesday evening, Batho said she wants the national energy debate "to be a debate without taboos." The ban of shale gas using hydraulic fracturing was initially imposed in 2011 by the previous government of Nicolas Sarkozy, after public and political opposition against shale gas drilling grew.

According to the Green party's Lambert, a complete ban should be enforced so the government can move fully away from the use of fossil fuels and concentrate on promoting renewable power and energy saving.

The Socialist government hopes support for the green energy sector will boost job growth, but if France wants to achieve its objectives for reducing nuclear power, it will likely have to build new gas-fired plants to supplement renewables supply.

Low European energy demand and price spreads between gas, coal and carbon markets have severely impacted the profitability of gas-fired power stations and prompted firms to freeze new-build plans.

The shale gas question was repeatedly raised and aroused much interest from the hundreds of audience members of Tuesday evening's energy forum, despite no specific mention on the event's agenda. Several leading figures voiced their support for further research into shale exploration.

"We should carry out research, after that techniques should evolve progressively," said Guy Dufraisse, president of Schneider Electric France.

"I am against the banning of research into shale gas [exploration]," said Michel Destot, president of France's City Mayors Association.

--Robin Sayles, newsdesk@platts.com
--Edited by Alisdair Bowles, alisdair_bowles@platts.com

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