PARIS: The French legislature passed a law prohibiting all oil and gas exploration and production within its borders and territories by the year 2040 right around when oil is expected to reach peak demand.
The law passed a final vote on Tuesday, which also forbids the issuance of any new licenses or license renewals. The new measure is largely symbolic as France produces enough fossil fuels to account for just one percent of demand. Imports fulfill the remaining demand.
The new provision shows that “current generations can take care of future generations,” according to Environment Minister Nicolas Hunt.
Earlier this month, French utilities company Engie agreed to ditch natural gas as a power source by 2050, opting instead for biogas and renewable hydrogen to fulfill its green goals, according to a Reuters report. “We will progressively make our gas greener so that by 2050 it can be 100 percent green,” Chief Executive Isabelle Kocher told reporters. “Most of the energy consumed is for heating, cooling and transport. By massively deploying green gas we could decarbonize all that.” Engie has 70 biogas projects around the world, with just over half of them in France. The company has more projects lined up for approval, which would increase biogas production tenfold and generate millions of euros of new revenue. Engie sold most of its fossil fuel interests to Total and other oil majors this year as part of its green energy plan.
