AlQa'dah 6, 1432, Oct 4, 2011, SPA -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy, during a visit to the south of France Tuesday, vowed there would be no exploration for shale gas in the region and confirmed the state would revoke three exploration permits, dpa repoted. "I want to take the opportunity I have here to confirm that there will no exploitation of shale gas by hydraulic fracturing in this exceptional area," Sarkozy said during a visit to the Gard, home to Cevennes National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Three permits awarded by the state in 2010 for the exploration of shale gas in the area - one to French oil giant Total and two to US-based Schuepbach Energy LLC - would be revoked, he confirmed. Ecology Minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet and Industry Minister Eric Besson on Monday announced that the government would revoke the permits in accordance with a law banning hydraulic fracturing, passed by lawmakers in June. Nosciusko-Morizet said Total and Schuepbach had missed a deadline to submit convincing plans for alternative shale gas exploration techniques. Hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, is the process of drilling into shale rock and injecting water, sand and chemicals into the rock at high pressure to release gas inside. France was the first country to ban fracking following protests by environmentalists and residents of the Gard. Critics of hydraulic fracturing say the process can contaminate groundwater, among other issues. The French Union of Petroleum Industries (UFIP) said the decision to revoke the permits was "prejudicial to the French economy" and warned it would send a "negative signal to international investors." "These decisions will prevent the identification and evaluation of the potential of new national energy resources, while France imports 99 per cent of its petrol consumption and 98 per cent of its gas consumption," UFIP said. Sarkozy said the desire to exploit new energy resources could not justify "massacring an almost spiritual landscape."
