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Dynamics and drivers of shale gas development in three European countries: can a European policy be imagined?

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Dynamics and drivers of shale gas development in three European countries: can a European policy be imagined?
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The European Commission introduced in its Work Programme 2013 an action regarding “Environmental climate and energy assessment framework to enable safe and secure unconventional hydrocarbon extraction”.

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After having assessed the existing legislative framework appropriateness regarding climate and environmental impacts of shale gas development in Europe, and having noted some improvements that could be proposed when using the hydraulic fracturing technique, the debate is now shifting to address the issue of the good governance level. To what extent a European initiative could be more effective or comprehensive than national legislation? In particular, it remains unclear whether a common EU policy that goes beyond environmental and climate measures can be built to regulate the industrial exploitation of shale gas in Europe.

However, before talking about a common European shale gas policy, it is necessary to look at the status of projects and initiatives at the national level. It appears that only three states have begun the process of developing shale gas resources at large scale, Denmark, Poland and the United Kingdom. Indeed, other countries with significant resources have banned exploration or hydraulic fracturing technique (France, Bulgaria), suspended the activity (Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, Austria, Czech Republic), or have just begun to consider operations (Romania, Spain).Therefore, an analysis of the characteristics of shale gas development in these three countries can actually give a picture of the on-going process of developing large-scale shale gas in Europe and assess whether a common European framework would be more suitable than the current national legislations.

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978-2-36567-210-8

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Dynamics and drivers of shale gas development in three European countries: can a European policy be imagined?

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Author(s)
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Climate & Energy
Center for Energy & Climate
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Ifri's Energy and Climate Center carries out activities and research on the geopolitical and geoeconomic issues of energy transitions such as energy security, competitiveness, control of value chains, and acceptability. Specialized in the study of European energy/climate policies as well as energy markets in Europe and around the world, its work also focuses on the energy and climate strategies of major powers such as the United States, China or India. It offers recognized expertise, enriched by international collaborations and events, particularly in Paris and Brussels.

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Dynamics and drivers of shale gas development in three European countries: can a European policy be imagined?

Dynamics and drivers of shale gas development in three European countries: can a European policy be imagined?