FRANCE MINERALS YEARBOOK—1988  629Dunkirk was illegal South African
coal, mislabeled as Australian coal transshipped from Belgium. The legal
imports of 780,000 tons of coal from the Republic of South Africa represented
only 7% of the total imports for France. 
 
 Nuclear Power.—EdF also administrates the nuclear industry and
was
affected by strikes at some plants. The deficit budget of CdF, however, was
the result more of the warmer than normal weather and the inability of the
cornpany to raise prices. A $283 million loss resulted, despite a 23% increase
in electricity exports, which amounts to approximately 36.7 billion kilowatt
hours in 1988. The United Kingdom remained the biggest customer with 12.8
billion kilowatt hours, followed by Switzerland and Italy, each with between
9 and 10 billion kilowatt hours. The French utility company had recently
made long-term contracts with neighboring utilities and countries supplying
excess French power. 
 The excess supply of nuclear generated electric power was the result of
the Government's strategic objective to not be dependent on imported oil.
Another objective, namely, to make France the premier vendor of nuclear reactors,
dissolved with the excess supply of oil and the market collapse for reactors.
However, between 1974 and 1982, France contracted for an average of 6,000
megawatts per year in nuclear power generating plants. Another 13,200 megawatts
will be commissioned by 1993 with those plants planned or under construction.
EdF was already planning to prematurely shut down older units as larger newer
units come on-line. 
 While French electrical power is significantly cheaper than in neighboring
countries, the debt amassed by EdF was approximately $40 billion. This has
been a problem for France, but the building program could become beneficial
if the availability of electrical power attracts additional industrial fa

cilities, such as an arrangement with Péchiney involving a 200,000
tpy aluminum plant at Dunkirk. 
 
 Petroleum and Natural Gas.—Elf 
Aquitaine, the French Government controlled oil company (Elf), purchased
a 25.5% stake in Enterprise Oil Co. for 368 million British pounds. The acquisition
netted reserves of 600 million barrels oil equivalent and oil production
of 60,000 barrels oil per day, and a majority interest in the Nelson Field,
which is due to begin production in the early 1990's. This entry in the British
North Sea conformed to the company's policy of renewing reserves in politically
and geographically safe areas. Previous investments of approximately $1 billion
in the British and Dutch North Sea had been for acquisitions of new oil and
gas interests. The purchase of RTZ assets in the North Sea was successful
but the attempt to merge RTZ's Elf Aquitaine Norge with Saga Petroleum AS
failed. 
 Elf Aquitaine planned to reduce its total work force by approximately 30%
in the next 3 years, resulting in the reduction in force of 1,400 workers.
Also, the rationalization move would reduce the refining capacity by 22 million
barrels. This planned reduction was to affect the Feyzin refinery in the
Lyon area. Downstream operations that lost money in the first portion of
the year were to be receive additional funding to improve productivity in
domestic operations. 
 The French oil and service industry, including Elf Aquitaine, Total CFP,
and Institut Francais du Petrole, jointly formulated plans for research and
development expenditures of $850 to $1,020 million over the next 5 years.
The intent was to keep French companies in the forefront of developing technologies
especially involving arctic petroleum and to reduce exploration and production
costs. 
 Domestic oil production increased again in 1988 by 6% to 25 million barrels,
breaking previous records. The 
Aquitaine Basin's contribution to total output diminished to 8.7 million
barrels of oil, less than 32°lo of the total. By contrast, Paris
Basin
production increased 9% to 15 million barrels. Elf Aquitaine encountered
an oil zone in a Paris suburb well and Triton France SA tested oil in a Paris
Basin wildcat. Premier Consolidated Oilfields PLC received a permit for a
concession in the Dordogne region of southwest France and plans to spend
$175,000 for geophysical work alone in the first 2 years; total expenditure
is estimated at $1.5 million. Conoco Inc.'s French unit was attempting to
farmout acreage to the Japanese company, Nippon Mining Co. Ltd. The area,
Conoco's Permis d'Auch acreage in southwest France, would be the first Japanese
entry into France. 
 The production breakdown for the top producers were as follows: Esso, 10.6
million barrels; Elf, 7.7 million barrels; and Total, 5.5 million barrels.

 The refinery investment and renovation totaled more than $600 million during
the year. Elf Aquitaine planned 
~ to spend $340 million on refinery en- 
~ hancements and to upgrade its market- 
~ ing system. Solvay Group of Brussels was to expand the Sarrable high density
plant to 120,000 million tons and Ste. Francaise Exxon Chemicals increased
olefins capacity at its Notre Dame de Gravenchon plant slightly, from 300,000
to 320,000 tpy; however, the company may increase capacity to 400,000 tpy
in the future. Mobil was building a plant at Notre Dame de Gravenchon to
make the base for synthetic lubricants, increasing the company's capacity
by 60%. ARCO Chemical Europe started up a $340 million plant at Fos-Mur-Mer
to make propylene oxide-tertiary butly alcohol; the total plant was nearing
completion. 
 Although France was dependent on oil imports for its refineries, Iranian
imports, which had constituted 6.6% of the French imports, were banned in
July 1987. This ban was lifted when the barter agreement involving French
agriculture for Iranian oil was negotiated;