2008 Minerals Yearbook FRANCE U.S. Department of the Interior December 2010 U.S. Geological Survey THE MINERAL INDUS T RY OF FRANCE By Alberto Alexander Perez For 2008, France’s gross domestic product (GDP) of and urban waste. The Government had created the Agency for $2,158 billion (based on purchasing power parity) was slightly Industrial Innovation [Agence de l’Innovation Industrielle] higher than the GDP of $2,152 billion for the previous year, (AII) in June 2005. In 2008, the AII was integrated into a newly and it remained the third largest GDP in the European Union created association called OSEO, which was established to (EU) after Germany and the United Kingdom. The output value fund and help businesses, particularly small and medium-sized of France’s entire industrial sector accounted for about 20.6% businesses, develop by helping to finance their innovation. In of the 2008 GDP. The country was a major processor of raw 2008, the AII provided partial funding of about $80 million1 for mineral materials and a manufacturer of industrial and consumer projects that involved the development of renewable energy. durable goods. France’s heavy industries, which, among other It also helped finance projects to further efficient uses of product categories, produced automotive and aviation products, energy and the development of more environmentally friendly chemicals, and machine tools for domestic consumption and technologies (OSEO, 2009, p. 22). export, relied mainly on imported metal ores and concentrates and on imported industrial minerals and mineral fuels Production (U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, 2008, 2010). In 2008, France’s estimated nickel output decreased by 18% Minerals in the National Economy and returned to rates of production equivalent to those of 2006. Crude steel production decreased by 7% compared with the Owing to the size and structure of France’s economy, the production level in 2007. Production of zinc decreased by 8%, upstream input of minerals was key to continued maintenance and production of secondary lead decreased by 7% (table 1). and growth of the country’s heavy industries. In 2007 (the Cement production dropped slightly to 21.7 million metric latest year for which data were available), the value of crude tons (Mt) in 2008. Also notable were the small decreases in the material imports alone, which included ores and concentrates of production of crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas compared metals and industrial minerals, base metals, and mineral fuels, with the 2007 levels of production (table 1). increased slightly compared with that of 2006, and amounted to about 3% of the GDP (Eurostat, 2008, p. 65). Mineral Trade Government Policies and Programs Most of France’s demand for fuel and nonfuel mineral raw materials was met by imports. The major commercial France held the rotating presidency of the EU in the second partners of France were all members of the EU and included part of 2008, a period that had long-term consequences for Belgium, Germany, Italy, and Spain. The leading non-EU Europe-wide regulations and governance. Under this presidency, commercial partner of France was the United States. The the French Government pursued the ratification of the Lisbon leading component of France’s mineral trade in 2008 was treaty, which is a set of rules and regulations that would serve its net imports of mineral fuels; France imported 23 Mt of in lieu of a formally declared Europe-wide constitution; this crude petroleum from the Commonwealth of Independent treaty had been threatened by the refusal of Ireland and the States (CIS), which was a decrease of 2% compared with Netherlands, through referendum voting, to ratify it. If ratified, the amount imported from the CIS in 2007. The country’s this treaty would have a direct effect on all policies of the imports of crude oil from Africa increased by 34.6%, in EU, from environmental regulations to commercial trading particular its imports from Nigeria, which increased by 97% and exploitation, and, as such, was considered by the French to 4.376 Mt; Algeria, which increased by 75.3% to 3.731 Mt; Government to be of great importance (Economist, The, 2008). and Libya, which increased by 36.4% to 7.083 Mt. The CIS The reduction of the Government of France’s involvement was the main supplier of crude oil to France in 2008 and in the country’s economy, which had begun in 2007, continued accounted for 27.9% of the total French crude oil imports. throughout 2008. The Government’s policies in this regard This seems to indicate a tendency by the French energy sector were aimed at raising the competitiveness of and investment to diversify petroleum imports, and, in particular, to increase in France’s economy. These policies were stimulated, in part, its imports from Africa over the CIS. From within the EU, by the country’s adoption of the Eurozone euro (€), which imports of crude oil were mainly from Norway and the United increased the competitive pressure on French companies Kingdom, which together accounted for 19.6% of France’s (U.S. Department of Commerce, 2007a, b). crude petroleum imports in 2008. In 2007 (the latest year for The Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development was which data were available), France’s imports of natural gas responsible for overseeing and regulating such environmental from the CIS had decreased by 14%, and those from Norway issues as agricultural runoff; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; forest damage from acid rain; and the 1Where necessary, values have been converted from Eurozone euros (€) to potential for water pollution from mining, mineral processing, U.S. dollars (US$) at annual average exchange rate of €0.680=US$1.00. France—2008 13.1 had increased by 4% compared with the levels of the previous and red clays domestically and from deposits in such countries year. Algeria, the Netherlands, and Norway together accounted as China, Germany, Spain, the United States, and Vietnam for for 67.4% of France’s natural gas imports in 2007. Outside the domestic use and export (Imerys S.A., 2009, p. 9-16). EU, Russia accounted for more than 13% of France’s imports Cement.—France’s principal cement manufacturers were of natural gas (Euro-Roc, 2007; Gambini, 2007; U.S. Energy Lafarge S.A. and Société des Ciments Français (Ciments Information Administration, 2007; Institute National de la Français), which was a subsidiary of Italcementi S.p.A of Italy. Statistique et des Etudes Economiques, 2009). In addition to their cement-producing facilities in France, both companies had major capital assets abroad. The other important Structure of the Mineral Industry producers of cement in France were the Vicat Group, which had five plants with a total cement production capacity of 6 Mt/yr, Although France continued to maintain state monopolies and Ciments d’Origny, which had six plants and a total cement in a number of sectors of the economy, state ownership of the production capacity of 4.2 Mt/yr. In 2008, cement consumption mineral sector had substantially diminished since 2006, and the in France dropped by 2.8% compared with that of 2007 owing mineral industry was increasingly a target for privatization in to a 1.1% decrease in construction sector output. It is expected 2007 and 2008. The Government maintained partial ownership that this trend will continue and that the estimated decrease in of the country’s electricity generating and natural gas production consumption in 2009 will be about 13% (PR Newswire Europe and distribution facilities. Table 2 provides data on major Ltd., 2006; Cembureau, 2009). French-owned enterprises that produced metals, industrial minerals, and mineral fuels in 2008. Mineral Fuels and Other Sources of Energy Commodity Review Of the total amount of primary energy consumed by France in 2008, 48.2% was electricity generated by Metals hydraulic, photovoltaic, thermal electric, nuclear, and wind power facilities. Nuclear energy accounted for an estimated Aluminum.—In 2008, France’s output of primary aluminum 80% of total electricity production, or an equivalent of remained at a similar level to that of 2007, and secondary 420 terawatthours (Twh). The principal sectors that consumed aluminum production in 2008 was estimated to have remained energy in France were the residential sector (which accounted at the same level as that of 2007 (table 1). France’s Aluminum for 43.3% of total energy consumption in the country), the Pechiney SA, which was owned by Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. (Rio transport sector (31.4%), the manufacturing industry, as Tinto), was the country’s sole producer of primary aluminum. defined by the Institut National de la Statistique et des Études Rio Tinto also operated facilities for the production of alumina Economiques (INSEE) (19%), the steel industry (3.6%), and and aluminum semimanufactures. In March, Rio Tinto closed agriculture (2.7%) (Institut National de la Statistique et des the Lannemezan smelter, which had a capacity of 50,000 metric Études Economiques, 2009). tons (t) (Alcan Inc., 2005, 2009). Natural Gas and Petroleum.—In 2008, France’s domestic Iron and Steel.—France’s output of pig iron decreased by production of crude petroleum decreased by an estimated 2% 1.025 Mt, which was the lowest output in the past 5 years. compared with the output in 2007. Production of liquefied Crude steel production dropped by 1.352 Mt, which was also the petroleum gas decreased by an estimated 3%, which continued lowest output in the past 5 years and far from the highest levels the trend of a substantial production decline since 2005 of production set in 2004 (table 1). Crude steel consumption that stemmed from facility downtime for scheduled 5-year decreased by 7.8% in 2008, and the change averaged a decrease maintenance at the Lacq gasfield and processing facility.