The French government Wednesday took the first step in introducing a new bill that would force French state-controlled power behemoth Electricite de France SA (EDF.FR) to sell part of its production to competitors at set prices.

In a statement, the French government said the bill on the Nouvelle Organisation du Marche de l'Electricite, or NOME , was drafted to accommodate the European Commission's concerns over competition. EDF generates power at low cost from its 58 nuclear plants, while competing power suppliers have to buy electricity first.

The new system, under which competitors would buy power from EDF up to "their strictest needs," should be implemented until 2025 and "capped in terms of volumes," the government said in its statement.

The government didn't elaborate about the price at which EDF would have to sell part of its production, nor the volume EDF would have to sell under the NOME scheme.

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