FDE Launches €15M Drilling Program in Lorraine to Advance Coalbed Methane and Natural Hydrogen Exploration

La Française de l’Énergie (FDE) is preparing to launch a new €15 million drilling campaign in Lorraine this autumn, aimed at boosting coalbed methane production and exploring recently identified natural hydrogen resources.

The program covers three operations: adding collection drains to an existing well (CBR-1), drilling a new production well (CBR-2), and executing a 4,000-meter exploration well (PTH-2) at Pontpierre. The latter will specifically assess Lorraine’s natural hydrogen potential, following encouraging findings from academic and industrial surveys in 2023.

Lorraine’s reserves are already well documented. Independent assessments by IFP Énergies Nouvelles and Sproule Group confirmed 2.1 billion cubic meters of recoverable methane, with production methods that avoid hydraulic fracturing. Instead, methane is released by depressurizing coal seams, allowing gas to flow naturally through horizontal drains.

FDE stresses the environmental benefits of its approach. A 2016 study suggested locally produced methane could carry up to ten times lower emissions than imported gas, mainly due to avoided transport. Still, coalbed methane remains a fossil fuel, and its long-term role in France’s carbon neutrality targets hinges on strategies like carbon capture or conversion into low-carbon hydrogen.

For policymakers, the campaign represents both an energy security play and a potential entry point into Europe’s natural hydrogen frontier.

Full press release can be found below.