‘Life is like it is’: TotalEnergies CEO defends strategy despite calls to cut fossil fuel production
The chief executive of TotalEnergies defended the firm’s greenhouse gas emissions strategy, saying the company remains committed to oil and gas despite repeated warnings that increasing fossil fuel production will only make matters worse.
Speaking to CNBC’s Dan Murphy in Vienna, Austria on the sidelines of an OPEC conference, TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said Wednesday that the company had allocated nearly one-third of its capital expenditure to low-carbon technologies, with the remainder spent on oil and gas.
“We are in both pillars, and we will remain on both pillars [for a long time],” Pouyanne said.
“Today, our society requires oil and gas … Why we are together, it is 80% of fossil fuels. There is no way to think that overnight we can just eliminate all that and rely only on 10% of low-carbon energy. It will take decades to build a new system,” he added.
“So, we must do two things: To continue to produce the oil and gas, [while] of course being very strict on the emissions. The question is not fossil fuels, it is emissions, to lower the emissions.”
His comments come just over one month after French riot police fired tear gas at hundreds of climate activists trying to prevent the firm’s annual general meeting. Activist groups had pledged to try to stop the shareholder meeting from taking place to denounce the group’s fossil fuel expansion plans.
TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said the company had allocated nearly one-third of its capital expenditure to low-carbon technologies, with the remainder spent on oil and gas.
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The burning of fossil fuels, such as oil and gas, is the chief driver of the climate emergency. The world’s leading climate scientists, collated by the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, have said tackling the crisis requires “immediate and deep emissions reductions across all sectors.”
The IPCC’s message, which was approved by governments across the globe, underscored the need for a substantial reduction in fossil fuel use to curb global heating, now at 1.1 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
U.N. chief Antonio Guterres, meanwhile, has warned that investing in new fossil fuel infrastructure is “moral and economic madness” and such investments will come to be seen as “a blot on the landscape and a blight on investment portfolios.”
‘Huge challenge’
TotalEnergies’ Pouyanne acknowledged criticism from climate campaigners that the company has not moved quickly enough to accelerate the energy transition, but said the “huge challenge” was to reconcile the security of supply with affordability and sustainability.
“If we don’t invest enough, the [oil] price will not be $75 per barrel, it will be $150 or $200 and all consumers will be super unhappy and our life will be a nightmare,” Pouyanne said.
“So … producing with strict new standards demonstrating that we can produce oil and gas in a very smart way with lower emissions. At the same, we invest in the new low-carbon energy, and we do it in a large way.”
He described the spike in energy prices in 2022 as a “catastrophe” following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“So, let’s keep this balanced. It’s difficult. I know the scientists told us you should forget [fossil fuels] — but life is like it is. We must make that transition at the pace which can be accepted by the society. That’s also one condition of the success.”
Oil industry should set carbon targets at COP28
The protest at TotalEnergies’ AGM on May 26 came at a time of palpable frustration among climate activists during the proxy voting season, with demonstrations also taking place at British oil majors BP and Shell after an extraordinary run of record profits across the industry.
Investors at TotalEnergies’ shareholder meeting ultimately rejected an activist resolution calling on the company to align its climate targets with the landmark Paris Agreement and commit to absolute carbon emission cuts by 2030.
The resolution, filed by Dutch actvist shareholder group Follow This and 17 institutional investors with 1.1 trillion euros ($1.2 trillion) under management, received 30% of the vote, up from 17% the last time a similar vote was held in 2020.
Protesters outside the Salle Pleyel venue in Paris could be heard chanting “all we want is to knock down Total” and “one, two, three degrees, we have Total to thank.”
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Asked how the company can seek to convince skeptical observers following a shareholder rebellion over TotalEnergies’ greenhouse gas emissions strategy, Pouyanne replied: “I didn’t see a shareholder revolt. No, I saw an NGO revolt, which is not the same.”
“We have to respect the ideas of everybody,” Pouyanne said. “The point is that we have a strategy which is exposed to our shareholders — by the way, if I am listening to most of my shareholders, I think I would do more oil and gas and maybe less green. So, we try to find the right balance. Maybe we don’t satisfy everybody.”
TotalEnergies, which aims to become a net zero company by 2050, has pledged to reduce emissions from all of its products by 40% in 2030.
Pouyanne called on the world’s oil and gas companies to set targets to reduce emissions from methane, a potent greenhouse gas, at the COP28 climate summit — which will be held in the United Arab Emirates later in the year.
He also urged the oil and gas industry to adopt targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions from their own operations, known as Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, by 2030 at the U.N. summit. The vast majority of emissions, however, are generated by customers’ use of an oil major’s oil and gas, known as Scope 3 emissions.
Tesla is going to build a new Megafactory in Texas near Houston, according to a tax abatement agreement with Waller County.
At the time of writing, Tesla had yet to comment on the new project, but the Waller County Commissioners Court confirmed the project on Wednesday when they approved a tax abatement deal with the company:
Under the proposed agreement, Tesla will receive tax abatements from Waller County based on property improvements. The deal includes $44 million in facility improvements and $150 million in Tesla manufacturing equipment that Tesla will install. The next phase involves a new $31 million distribution facility with about $2 million in Tesla distribution equipment and building upgrades.
Tesla is going to take over a 1-million-sq-ft building that it already held the lease on at the Empire West industrial park near Katy, Texas – just outside of Houston.
Logistics company DB Schenker occupied the space where it handled parts for Tesla, but it will move out and Tesla plans to build Megapack production lines at the site:
Tesla will operate a new Megapack battery storage manufacturing facility at a 1 million-square-foot building, which was initially constructed with no tenant on speculation that it would attract jobs and economic development.
Tesla has previously referred to plants producing Megapacks as “Megafactory”. The company already operates one in Lathrop, California, and one in Shanghai, China, where it just started production.
Those factories are set up for a production capacity of 40 GWh worth of Megapacks per year.
It’s not clear if Tesla plans for a similar capacity at this new factory, but the county announced project should result in creating 1,500 jobs.
In addition to the existing building, the project will include the construction of an additional “600,000-square-foot distribution facility with some manufacturing capabilities.”
Unlike its automotive business, Tesla’s energy business has been growing at an impressive pace – although prices and margins have come down last year.
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![Is Genesis taking notes from Porsche? New GV60 Magma caught with the Taycan [Video]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/03/Genesis-GV60-Magma-Porsche-2.jpeg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Genesis is gearing up to unleash its alter ego with its upcoming Magma lineup, its debut into the world of high-performance luxury vehicles. First up is the Genesis GV60 Magma, due out later this year. As testing wraps up, the GV60 Magma was spotted alongside none other than the Porsche Taycan.
The first dedicated Genesis EV model, the GV60, will kick off another new chapter for the Korean luxury automaker.
Genesis unveiled the GV60 Magma last March, claiming it will kick off “the brand’s expansion into the realm of high-performance vehicles.” The performance EV includes an improved battery, chassis, and motor for added performance.
The Magma model boasts a wider, lower stance for more control. Other key upgrades include a wider front air intake to help cool the batteries, motor, and brakes. It also includes air curtains to maximize efficiency and an added roof fin channels air to the rear wing, generating downward force.
Genesis upgraded the interior to match the GV60 Magma’s luxurious, sporty design. It includes unique sports car-like bucket seats with exclusive “double-diamond stitching” in the Magma orange and titanium coloring.
Genesis GV60 Magma spotted with the Porsche Taycan
With its official debut coming up, the sporty Genesis GV60 Magma was spotted testing alongside a Porsche Taycan and Hyundai’s IONIQ 5 and IONIQ 6 N models.
Despite the camouflage, the video from CarSpyMedia reveals a few new design elements, like the two-line headlight featured on the updated GV60 model.
Genesis will launch the GV60 Magma later this year in its home market, followed by the US, Europe, and others. Production is scheduled to start in the third quarter of 2025.
Will the Genesis GV60 Magma keep up with the Porsche Taycan or Tesla Model S Plaid? Priced and specs will be revealed closer to launch, but it will sit above the Performance AWD trim, which starts at $69,900 in the US. With up to 429 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque, it can hit 0 to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds.
| Horsepower | 0 to 60 mph (seconds) |
Starting Price | |
| Genesis GV60 Performance | 429 | 3.7 | $69,900 |
| Genesis GV60 Magma | ? | ? | ? |
| Porsche Taycan | 402 | 4.5 | $99,400 |
| Porsche Taycan Turbo GT (with Weissach Package) |
1,092 | 2.1 | $230,000 |
| Tesla Model S Plaid | 1,020 | 1.99 | $89,990 |
In comparison, the Porsche Taycan starts at $99,400 with up to 402 hp and a 0 to 60 mph time in 4.5 seconds. The Taycan Turbo GT, equipped with its Weissach package, packs 1,092 hp for a 0 to 60 mph sprint in just 2.1 seconds, but it costs $230,000.
Tesla’s Model S Plaid starts at $79,990 and can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 3.1 seconds with 1,020 horsepower. Which performance EV are you choosing?
Source: CarSpyMedia
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