Opening of the French gas market

A report on the opening of the French gas market has been established, on the request of both the French minister of economy, finances and industry and the state secretary of industry, as expressed in their respective letters addressed to the president of the commission of electric power regulation (CRE). This report follows the step report on the opening of the French gas market published on January 15, 2002. It presents a status of the French gas market since August 2000, date of the enforcement of the European Union directive 98/30/CE, and expresses some recommendations about the main questions that should fall into the field of the future gas regulation. This report was elaborated before the project of law relative to the energy markets and published on October 24, 2002. These recommendations will have to be adapted to the dispositions of the law. This article presents some excerpts of the synthesis report. (J.S.)