AMSTERDAM, April 16 (Reuters) - The Dutch Senate on

Tuesday approved a law to permanently close the Groningen gas

field in the north of the Netherlands, following the

government's promise that production will never be resumed to

limit seismic risks in the region.

Normal gas production at Groningen in the north of the

Netherlands ended last October after years of output cuts to

limit seismic activity linked to decades of extraction, that has

damaged thousands of buildings.

The gas field, once one of Europe's main suppliers, was

available for limited production during a cold snap in recent

months, but the government has proposed a law that would close

the field entirely by Oct. 1.