TOTAL S.A.'s Subsidiary and Partners Discover Oil on Offshore Vietnamese Block
November 23, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. announced that its subsidiary, Total E&P Vietnam, and its partners, have discovered oil in the Lac Da Nau prospect, located in the southern part of the block in the Vietnamese offshore. 15-01/05 LDN-1X exploration well is the first well drilled and the first discovery made on Block 15-01/05. It is located approximately 110 kilometers to the East of Vung Tau and approximately 65 kilometers off the coast, and was drilled in a water depth of 45 meters. The well produced 4,200 barrels per day of 44 API oil during tests performed in the basement. Total E&P Vietnam's partners are Phu Quy Petroleum Operating Exploration and Production Company Limited (40% stake),a subsidiary of Petrovietnam Exploration and Production Corporation, which is also the Operator of the Block, and SK Energy (25%). |
French Court Rules Out TOTAL S.A. From Explosion Trial-Reuters
November 19, 2009 |
| Reuters reported that a French court dismissed an attempt to hold Total S.A. and its former boss responsible for a 2001 blast at a chemical factory that killed 31 people and injured thousands more. The court in the southern French city of Toulouse, where the disaster took place, also cleared Total's subsidiary Grande Paroisse, the owner of the AZF chemical fertiliser factory where the explosion occurred and the plant's director. Judges subsequently found there was no proof of a deliberate attack and an accident was the most likely cause of the blast which damaged around 30,000 homes and hundreds of businesses in a radius of up to 6 kilometres (3.7 miles). Both Grande Paroisse and former AZF manager Serge Biechelin had been charged with involuntary homicide and causing injury and destruction of property, but the court ruled it was impossible to reach a verdict against them with certainty. As a result they were eliminated from the case. Plaintiffs had argued that the explosion was caused by a problem of stocking volatile ammonium nitrate and accused the plant's management of negligence. The court also ruled out holding the Total group and former head Thierry Desmarest responsible, saying a summons against them issued by victims was not admissible as neither had been put under formal investigation by magistrates. |
TOTAL S.A. In Talks To Buy China Refining Assets-Reuters
November 18, 2009 |
| Reuters reported that TOTAL S.A. has been looking to buy oil refining assets in China. |
TOTAL S.A. Admits Safety Breaches In Fuel Depot Blast-Reuters
November 13, 2009 |
| Reuters reported that TOTAL S.A. has admitted safety breaches and to polluting ground water, in connection with an explosion at a fuel depot in England in 2005. The Company said it entered pleas of guilty at a hearing to charges brought by regulators the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Environment Agency (EA). The blast at Buncefield in December 2005 caused widespread damage over a 450-metre area of Hertfordshire, north of London, and injured 43 people. |
EU Fines Firms Including TOTAL S.A.'s Elf Aquitaine $260 Million For Chemicals Price Fixing-Reuters
November 11, 2009 |
| Reuters reported that The European Commission (EU) issued fines totalling EUR173 million ($260 million) to 24 companies for belonging to a cartel that fixed prices for heat stabilisers. The biggest fine was issued to BASF SE's Ciba, which was told to pay a total of EUR68.4 million for coordinating the pricing of two kinds of heat stabiliser, chemicals which are involved in making PVC and packaging products heat resistant and more rigid. Akzo was fined a total of EUR40.6 million, TOTAL S.A.'s Elf Aquitaine was ordered to pay 28.6 million and Elementis plc 32.5 million. Chemson Corporation, was fined 3.8 million. Chemtura Corporation was found to have participated in the cartel but had its fines cancelled because it brought the price-fixing issue to the Commission's attention. Arkema, a firm owned by Elf Aquitaine, had its fines increased by 90% as it had taken part in previous such cartels, the Commission said. BASF said it would appeal the fine, citing a statute of limitations. It said Ciba had sold the firm that engaged in the price-fixing 10 years ago. Elementis also said it would appeal the fine, while AkzoNobel, owner of Akzo, said it was reviewing the decision and pointed out that it had two months to lodge a court appeal. |
TOTAL S.A. Signs Research Agreement with MIT
November 3, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. announced the signing of a research agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to develop new stationary batteries that are designed to enable the storage of solar power. This agreement valued at USD 4 million over five years is part of the MIT Energy Initiative, which TOTAL S.A. joined as a member in November 2008. |
TOTAL S.A. Shuts Gasoline Unit At Port Arthur Refinery-DJ
November 2, 2009 |
| Dow Jones reported that TOTAL S.A. has shut a fluid catalytic cracking unit at its refinery in Port Arthur, Texas, according to a filing with the state's pollution-control agency. A main fractionator tower was leaking, and it has since been shut, TOTAL S.A. said in a report to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. TOTAL S.A. didn't say when the unit would be restarted. |
Zambia To Buy TOTAL S.A. 's 50% Stake In Indeni Refinery-DJ
October 27, 2009 |
| Dow Jones reported that the Zambian government has decided to buy TOTAL S.A.'s 50% stake in the country's sole petroleum refinery due to its strategic importance to the economy, the minister of energy and water development has said. In a statement seen by Dow Jones Newswires Tuesday, Kenneth Konga said talks with TOTAL S.A. are in advanced stages and are likely to be concluded this week. The Zambian government already holds 50% in Indeni Petroleum Refinery. |
StatoilHydro ASA Drill Dry Well in North Sea in License with Petoro, Total SA, Exxon Mobil Corporation and ConocoPhillips-Reuters
October 26, 2009 |
| Reuters reported that StatoilHydro ASA has drilled a dry well in the North Sea. The well will be permanently plugged and abandoned. StatoilHydro is the operator with a 49.3% stake in license 079. State-owned Petoro holds 33.6% in the license, Total SA 10%, Exxon Mobil Corporation holds 4.7% and ConocoPhillips holds 2.4% in the license. |
TOTAL S.A. In Talks On Iran Projects, No Decision Made-DJ
October 21, 2009 |
| Dow Jones reported that TOTAL S.A. is still in talks over Iranian hydrocarbon projects, but has yet to make a final decision. Total is interested in the Pars LNG export plan, which will get natural gas from the giant South Pars gas field, but the Company needs to examine the project's contractual terms and political conditions before it approves any investment. |
TOTAL SA's Yemen LNG Starts Production
October 15, 2009 |
| Total SA announced that the Yemen LNG liquefaction plant started producing Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) on October 15, 2009. Total is lead shareholder of Yemen LNG and holds a 39.62% interest, alongside the state-owned company Yemen Gas Company (16.73%), Hunt Oil Company (17.22%), SK Energy (9.55%), Korea Gas Corporation (6%), Hyundai Corporation (5.88%), and GASSP1 (5%). The Yemen LNG project, which will have required an overall USD 4.5 billions investment. The plant started production with the first train while the construction of the second train is being completed. Total production capacity will reach 6.7 millions tons of LNG per year (Mt/y). |
TOTAL SA Signs Agreement with Rubis SA for Sale of Stake in Petrol Distribution Network in Corsica
October 8, 2009 |
| Total SA announced that it has signed agreement with Rubis SA, regarding part of its petrol distribution network located in Corsica, France. Rubis acquires, partially from Total and from Shell, 35% of the storage company, DPLC, which owns the fuel tank terminals located in Ajaccio and Bastia. Those agreements include the support and logistics assets for Rubis. The agreements are subject to approval of the relevant authorities and competition bodies, as well as of the purge of third parties rights and of Rubis as a new shareholder in relation with, those process being initiated by the end of 2009. |
Total SA, Sonatrach and Cepsa Announce the Approval of Timimoun Gas Project in Algeria
October 7, 2009 |
| Total SA, together with Sonatrach and Cepsa, announced that the Algerian National Oil and Gas Development Agency (ALNAFT) has approved the development plan for the Timimoun natural gas project, located between Timimoun and Adrar in Southwestern Algeria. Development work is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2009, with first gas scheduled for 2013. Timimoun is expected to commercially produce around 1.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year at plateau. Total, Sonatrach and Cepsa will jointly operate the Timimoun project. The development plan entails drilling around 40 wells to tap eight structures over an area of 2,500 square kilometres. It also includes the construction of gas gathering and processing facilities, as well as a connection to the pipeline that Sonatrach has been called to develop to carry gas from fields in southwestern Algeria to Hassi R'Mel. Under the marketing agreement, Sonatrach will market all the gas produced. The Timimoun development project consolidates the long-standing cooperation between Total and Sonatrach in the upstream. |
TOTAL S.A. and GDF Suez SA Sign Heads of Agreement with KazMunaiGas to Develop the Khvalynskoye Field
October 6, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. announced the signature of a heads of agreement (HOA) establishing the principles of a partnership with GDF Suez SA and KazMunaiGas (KMG) for the development of the Khvalynskoye field, located offshore in the Caspian Sea on the border between Kazakhstan and Russia. Under the terms of the HOA, TOTAL S.A. and GDF Suez SA will acquire a participation of 25% (TOTAL S.A. 17%, GDF Suez SA 8%) from the initial 50% stake held by KMG. |
TOTAL S.A. And Partners Of Bongkot Joint Venture Announces Gas Sales Agreement
September 22, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. and the partners of the Bongkot Joint Venture announced that a Gas Sales Agreement has been signed with PTT covering all gas production from the Greater Bongkot South (GBS) field in the Gulf of Thailand. The Joint Venture is operated by PTTEP (44.45%), alongside partners Total (33.33%) and BG Group (22.22%). With all the construction contracts for the GBS development being awarded, GBS first production is expected in 2012. At plateau, GBS will contribute 20,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to Total`s production, an increase of approximately 50% to the Group`s production in Thailand. This development will enable the Bongkot Joint Venture to further contribute to the increasing gas demand in Thailand. |
Venezuela To Invest $25 Billion With TOTAL S.A. In Oil Project-Reuters
September 22, 2009 |
| Reuters reported that Venezuela will invest $25 billion with TOTAL S.A. to develop the Junin 10 field in the Orinoco heavy crude belt. |
TOTAL S.A., GDF Suez SA, and Photovoltech Join IMEC's Silicon Solar Cell Research Program
September 21, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. announced that together with GDF Suez SA and their common solar cells manufacturing subsidiary, Photovoltech, they have joined the IMEC industrial affiliation program on next generations of crystalline silicon solar cells. The multi-partner research and development program concentrates on sharply reducing the silicon use, whilst at the same time increasing the efficiency of solar cells. This will substantially lower the cost for solar energy. TOTAL S.A., GDF Suez SA, and Photovoltech will dedicate researchers to this program. |
Linde, Daimler, EnBW, NOW, OMV, Shell, Total and Vattenfall Sign up to Hydrogen Infrastructure Built-up Plan in Germany
September 10, 2009 |
| Linde AG, Daimler AG, Energie Baden-Wuerttemberg AG, NOW GmbH Nationale Organisation Wasserstoff- und Brennstoffzellentechnologie, OMV Refining and Marketing GmbH Deutschland GmbH, Royal Dutch Shell Plc's Deutsche Shell Holding GmbH, Total SA's Total GmbH and Vattenfall AG announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Berlin with the participation of the German Minister of Transport, Wolfgang Tiefensee. The agreement intends the evaluation of the setup of a hydrogen infrastructure in Germany so as to promote serial production of electric vehicles with fuel cell. Thereby the co-operation is also open for further partners interested in the project. The MoU comprises two phases. Phase One includes the evaluation of options for an area-wide roll-out of hydrogen fuelling stations in Germany and the definition of a joint business plan agreement including an analysis of possible public support measures. In Phase One Partners intend to leverage plans to install new hydrogen fuelling stations by 2011. This will take place within the framework of the German economic stimulus package (Konjunkturpaket II) and other national and state programs to jointly address standardization and cost reduction issues. Subject to the positive and satisfactory outcome of such a business case agreement the Partners will implement the corresponding action plan in Phase Two. |
TOTAL SA Starts LNG Production from Train B of Qatargas 2 Project
September 9, 2009 |
| TOTAL SA announced that Train B of the Qatargas 2 project started producing liquefied natural gas (LNG) on September 7, 2009. LNG from Qatargas 2 Train B is primarily intended for deliveries in the United Kingdom, France and the United States. |
TOTAL S.A. Subsidiary Acquires Stake in Tobermory Discovery
September 9, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. announced that its affiliate, Total E&P UK Limited (Total E&P UK), has entered into agreements with Mobil North Sea LLC, Marathon Oil U.K., Ltd. and Anadarko North Sea Holding Company Limited to acquire a 43.75% stake in UK Licence No. P967, which includes the Tobermory discovery. Total E&P UK will become the operator of the licence. |
TOTAL S.A. Announces Start-up of Production of the Tombua and Landana Fields
September 9, 2009 |
| TOTAL S.A. announced that the Tombua and Landana fields located 80 kilometers offshore Angola, operated by Chevron and in which TOTAL S.A. owns a 20% interest, started crude oil production on August 19, 2009. The two fields located in Block 14 are expected to achieve peak production of 100,000 barrels per day in 2011. Recoverable resources for the two fields are estimated at 350 million barrels. |
TOTAL S.A. And Lukoil In Talks To Develop Foreign Projects-DJ
September 7, 2009 |
| Dow Jones reported that TOTAL S.A. and Russia's private oil producer Lukoil Holdings are considering joint exploration projects in Kazakhstan, Colombia and western Africa. The two companies may cooperate on development of the Khvalynskoye offshore field in the Caspian Sea, for which Lukoil holds the license. TOTAL S.A. and Lukoil may also join forces in Colombia, where both companies hold blocks located close to each other, and in Ghana and Ivory Coast, where Lukoil recently started exploration drilling at one of four offshore blocks. |
The Dow Chemical Company Completes Divestiture of Ownership In TRN Refinery For Approximately $800 Million To TOTAL S.A.
September 1, 2009 |
| The Dow Chemical Company announced that it has completed the sale of its interests in Total Raffinaderij Nederland N.V. to Total S.A. for an enterprise value of approximately $800 million, including inventory. |
Pertamina To Acquire 15% Stake In Mahakam From TOTAL S.A. This Year-DJ
August 31, 2009 |
| Dow Jones reported that PT Pertamina will acquire a 15% in the Mahakam gas block from TOTAL S.A. this year, possibly via an asset swap in which Total would gain a stake in one of Pertamina's concessions. |
Recent News