Arnaud Montebourg, French Minister for Industrial Recovery
PARIS, FRANCE — “France isn’t prepared to tap its shale energy resources until ‘clean technologies’ are invented to replace hydraulic fracturing, Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg said.
The technique known as fracking causes ‘irreversible pollution’ in some cases, the minister was cited as saying in an interview published today in Les Echos newspaper. It will probably be replaced by a different method, he said.
The French parliament passed a law last year outlawing fracking because of concern it can pollute drinking water, effectively halting plans by companies including Total SA (FP) to explore for shale gas in southern France. Fracking is widely used in the U.S., including by Total, to produce gas.
France will maintain the ban on fracking, Environment and Energy Minister Delphine Batho told RMC radio today. ”
— Tara Patel, Bloomberg Businessweek
