EN Official Journal of the European Union C 453/25

Communication from the French Government concerning Directive 94/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the conditions for granting and using authorisations for the prospection, exploration and production of hydrocarbons (1)

(Notice regarding an application for an exclusive licence to prospect for liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons — ‘the Beckenrand Licence’)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2014/C 453/13)

On 8 August 2014 Vermilion REP SAS, a company with registered offices at 1762, route de Pontenx, 40160 Parentis-en-Born (France), applied for an exclusive five-year licence to prospect for liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons (‘the Beckenrand licence’) in the Department of Haut-Rhin.

The perimeter of the area covered by this licence is demarcated by the straight lines connecting the points defined below:

Point NTF meridian of origin Paris RGF93 meridian of origin Greenwich Longitude East Latitude North Longitude East Latitude North BLOCK 1 A 5,60 gr 53,80 gr 7°22′36″ 48°25′12″ B 5,70 gr 53,80 gr 7°28′00″ 48°25′12″ C 5,70 gr 53,70 gr 7°28′00″ 48°19′48″ D 5,60 gr 53,70 gr 7°22′36″ 48°19′48″ BLOCK 2 E 5,50 gr 53,60 gr 7°17′12″ 48°14′24″ F 5,60 gr 53,60 gr 7°22′36″ 48°14′24″ G 5,60 gr 53,40 gr 7°22′36″ 48°03′36″ H 5,50 gr 53,40 gr 7°17′12″ 48°03′36″

The area as defined above covers approximately 201 km2.

Submission of applications and criteria for awarding rights

The initial applicant and competing applicants must prove that they meet the requirements for obtaining licences set out in Articles 4 and 5 of Decree No 2006-648 of 2 June 2006 (as amended) on mining rights and underground storage rights (Official Journal of the French Republic, 3 June 2006).

Interested companies may, within 90 days of the publication of this notice, submit a competing application in accordance with the procedure summarised in the ‘Notice regarding the granting of mining rights for hydrocarbons in France’ published in Official Journal of the European Communities C 374, 30 December 1994, p. 11, and established by Decree No 2006-648 of 2 June 2006 (as amended) on mining rights and underground storage rights (Official Journal of the French Republic, 3 June 2006).

Competing applications must be sent to the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy at the address given below. Decisions on the initial application and any competing applications will be taken within two years of the date on which the French authorities received the initial application, i.e. by 16 August 2016 at the latest.

Conditions and requirements regarding performance of the activity and cessation thereof

Applicants are referred to Articles L. 161-1 and L. 161-2 of the Mining Code and to Decree No 2006-649 of 2 June 2006 (as amended) on mining and underground storage operations and the regulations governing mining and underground storage (Official Journal of the French Republic, 3 June 2006).

Further information can be obtained from the following address:

Ministère de l’écologie, du développement durable et de l’énergie Direction générale de l’énergie et du climat — Direction de l’énergie Bureau exploration et production des hydrocarbures Tour Séquoia 1 place Carpeaux 92800 Puteaux FRANCE Tel. +33 140819527

The abovementioned laws and regulations can be consulted on the Légifrance website:

http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr

(1) OJ L 164, 30.6.1994, p. 3.