UPDATE 1-ECB's Noyer sees French banks passing stress tests

* Says testing not over, French banks likely to pass

* Stress test results due July 23

(Adds background) PARIS, July 6 (Reuters) - French banks are likely to pass ongoing Europe-wide stress tests by regulators, European Central Bank Governing Council member Christian Noyer said on Tuesday.

French banks, which include BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) and Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA), are regularly tested and have so far passed with success, said Noyer, who is also head of the Bank of France.

"(Testing) is not finished yet, but there's no reason to believe that the result of the French banks will be different from regular tests that we do and which they passed with success," Noyer told reporters on the sidelines of the Europlace business forum in Paris.

His words echoed French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde, who said on Sunday she was not worried about France's banks and that stress tests would show banks in Europe were "solid" and "healthy". [ID:nLDE66302I]

Publication of the stress tests, which is designed to reassure financial markets about the health of the European Union's banking system, is due on July 23.

The tests are expected to track more than 100 banks' ability to withstand a severe downturn in economic and financial market conditions.

A first batch of tests on 25 large, cross-border banks including Germany's Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), BNP Paribas and Britain's HSBC (HSBA.L) appears to have been completed. Testing is being extended to potentially more than quadruple the number of banks and to include an element of sovereign risk. [ID:nLDE660160]

There is concern about the possibility of serious balance sheet weaknesses being discovered among smaller, second- and third-tier banks in Germany and Spain.

However, officials from the European Central Bank and from EU governments have insisted that the stress tests will show the European banking system is fundamentally healthy. (Reporting by Marcel Michelson, writing by Lionel Laurent; Editing by Susan Fenton)