FSUOGM: TotalEnergies to remain in Russia despite Ukrainian invasion

French oil major TotalEnergies has said it intends to stay put in Russia despite Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, although it has said it will not invest in any new projects in the country.

TotalEnergies has shown greater restraint in its response to events in Ukraine than its European peers BP, Equinor and Shell, which have all said they intend to exit Russia’s oil and gas industry altogether.

In a press release on March 1, TotalEnergies was clear in its opposition to Moscow’s actions, stating that it “condemns Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, which has tragic consequences for the population and threatens Europe.” It also said it expressed “solidarity with the Ukrainian people who are suffering with consequences and with the Russian people who will also suffer the consequences.”

TotalEnergies added it would provide fuel to the Ukrainian authorities and aid to Ukrainian refugees in Europe, while complying with the sweeping sanctions that Europe has slapped on Russia in recent days, which it said that it would support.

TotalEnergies alongside BP are considered to be the international oil companies (IOCs) most entrenched in Russia. The former’s main asset is a 19.4% stake in Russia’s top LNG exporter Novatek. It is also a minority shareholder in Novatek’s operational Yamal LNG plant, and its Arctic LNG-2 project, due to come online in 2023. In addition, it is partnered with Novatek at the Terneftegas gas fields and holds a share in the Zarubezhneft-operated Kharyaga oilfield.

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