TotalEnergies SE is a French multinational integrated energy and petroleum company founded in 1924 and is one of the seven supermajor oil companies. Its businesses cover the entire oil and gas chain, from crude oil and natural gas exploration and production to power generation, transportation, refining, petroleum product marketing, and international crude oil and product trading. TotalEnergies is also a large-scale chemicals manufacturer.
TotalEnergies has its head office in the Tour Total in La Défense district in Courbevoie, west of Paris. The company is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.[2] In the 2023 Forbes Global 2000, TotalEnergies was ranked as the 21st largest company in the world.[3]
History
1924–1985: Compagnie Française des Pétroles
The company was founded after World War I, when petrol was seen as vital in case of a new war with Germany. The then-French President Raymond Poincaré rejected the idea of forming a partnership with Royal Dutch Shell in favour of creating an entirely French oil company. At Poincaré's behest in 1924 Col. Ernest Mercier, with the support of 90 banks and companies, founded the Compagnie Française des Pétroles (CFP) (in English, the French Petroleum Company).
As per the agreement reached during the San Remo conference of 1920, the French state received the 25% share held by Deutsche Bank in the Turkish Petroleum Company (TPC) as part of the compensation for war damages caused by Germany during World War I. The French government's stake in TPC was transferred to CFP,[4] and the Red Line agreement in 1928 rearranged the shareholding of CFP in TPC (later renamed the Iraq Petroleum Company in 1929) to 23.75%.[5] The company from the start was regarded as a private sector company in view of its listing on the
Organization
Business trends
The key trends of TotalEnergies are (as at the financial year ending 31 December):[89][90]
Business segments
In 2016, Total set up a new organization to achieve its ambition to become a responsible energy major.[91] It is composed of the following segments: Exploration & Production;[92] Gas, Renewables & Power; Refining & Chemicals; Trading & Shipping; Marketing & Services; and Total Global Services.
In 2016 Total created two new corporate divisions: People & Social Responsibility (Human Resources; Health, Safety & Environment; the Security Division; and a new Civil Society Engagement Division) and Strategy & Innovation (Strategy & Climate Division, responsible for ensuring that strategy incorporates the 2 °C global warming scenario, Public Affairs, Audit, Research & Development, the Chief Digital Officer and the Senior Vice President Technology).
Subsidiaries
TotalEnergies Italia
Total Italia S.p.A. (originally Total Italia S.r.l.) is an Italian company that operates in the distribution of lubricants. It is a subsidiary of TotalEnergies SE.
It was founded in 2018 by the split of the Special Fluids branch from TotalErg in view of the acquisition by Gruppo API. It takes its name from the old Total Italia, dissolved in 2010 with the birth of TotalErg.
TotalEnergies Turkey (Türkiye)
Güzel Enerji Akaryakıt A.Ş. is a Turkish company that operates under Licensee of TotalEnergies S.A.
After operating in Turkey under the international energy company TotalEnergies S.A. since 1992. In March 2020, the takeover process (from Demirören Holding
Operations
In May 2014, the company shelved its Joslyn North oil sands project in the Athabasca region of Alberta, Canada, indefinitely, citing concerns about operating costs. An estimated $11 billion has been spent on the project, in which Total is the largest shareholder with 38.5%. Suncor Energy holds 36.75%, Occidental Petroleum owns 15% and Japan's Inpex has a 10% interest.[102]
Total is involved in 23 projects of exploration and production[103] in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America and Russia.
Investments
In 1937, Iraq Petroleum Company
Controversies
Environmental and safety records
In 1999, the Total SA company was fined €375,000 for the MV Erika oil spill that stretched 400 kilometers from La Rochelle to the western tip of Brittany. The company was only fined that amount because it was only partially liable because Total SA did not own the ship. The plaintiffs had sought more than $1.5 billion in damages. More than 100 groups and local governments joined in the suit. The Total company was fined just over $298,000. The majority of the money will go to the French government, several environmental groups, and various regional governments. The Total SA company was also fined $550,000 for the amount of marine pollution that came from it. After the oil spill it tried to restore its image and have opened a sea turtle conservation project in Masirah in recent years.
Prior to the verdict in which Total was found guilty one of the counterparts in the incident, Malta Maritime Authority (MMA), was not to be tried for having any hand in the incident. In 2005, Total submitted a report to the Paris courts which stated that Total had gathered a group of experts which stated the tanker was corroded and that Total was responsible for it. The courts sought a second expert reviewing this information, which was turned down.[125]
In 2001, the AZF chemical plant exploded in Toulouse, France, while belonging to the Grande Paroisse branch of Total.
Automobile and motorcycle OEM partnerships
TotalEnergies is an official recommended fuel and lubricants for all prominent Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance members, including Renault (shared with BP), Nissan (shared with ExxonMobil), Infiniti, Dacia, Alpine and Datsun, Kia, three Stellantis marques (Citroën, Peugeot and DS), Honda (including
Sponsorship
Total has provided fuel and lubricants to professional auto racing teams.
Total has been a longtime partner of Citroën Sport in the World Rally Championship, Dakar Rally and World Touring Car Championship. Sébastien Loeb won nine WRC drivers titles, whereas Ari Vatanen and Pierre Lartigue won four editions of the Dakar Rally.
Total has been a partner of Peugeot Sport in Formula One from 1995 to 2000, the British Touring Car Championship in 1995 and 1996 and since 2001 in the World Rally Championship, Intercontinental Rally Challenge, 24 Hours of Le Mans, Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, Dakar Rally and Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. Total is also a partner of Peugeot Sport for its customer racing TCR Touring Car programme and its Le Mans Hypercar project in the FIA World Endurance Championship.[149]
Total was a partner of Renault Sport in Formula One from 2009 to 2016. Their logo appeared on the
See also
- 2005 Hertfordshire Oil Storage Terminal fire
- 2007 UK petrol contamination
- Centre Scientifique et Technique Jean Féger, main technical and scientific research center for Total in Pau, France
- ERAP
- Fossil fuels lobby
- Lindsey Oil Refinery
External links
References
- 2023 Annual Report (Form 20-F) US Securities and Exchange Commission, 29 March 2024, retrieved 20 March 2024^
- Euro Stoxx 50 | Index | 965814 | EU0009658145 | Börse Frankfurt (Frankfurt Stock Exchange) Boerse-frankfurt.de, retrieved 4 November 2015^
- Forbes Global 2000