The French energy giant TotalEnergies announced on Tuesday that it has decided to stop all its purchases of Russian oil and petroleum products by the end of the year at the latest.
The French company said in a statement that it would “gradually suspend its activities in Russia” in the middle of the worsening situation in Ukraine. He underlined “the existence of alternative sources to supply Europe” with oil.
In its press release, Total pledged to ensure “strict compliance with current and future European sanctions, whatever the consequences on the management of its assets in Russia”.
Russia accounted for 17% of the company’s oil and gas production in 2020. In addition, TotalEnergies owns a 19.4% stake in Russian natural gas producer Novatek.
The French conglomerate, which made around $190 billion in revenue last year and nearly $16 billion in profit, also has a 20% stake in the Yamal LNG project in northern Russia. Total said it continued to supply Europe with liquefied natural gas from the Yamal LNG plant “as long as European governments consider Russian gas necessary”.
“Unlike oil, it is evident that Europe’s gas logistics capabilities make it difficult to refrain from importing Russian gas in the next two to three years without affecting the continent’s energy supply,” the statement said.
The United States at the beginning of the month bans imports of Russian oil in a move that targets the country’s vast energy sector, which accounts for more than half of Russia’s annual revenue. But many European countries are much more dependent on Russia for oil and gas, making it difficult to quickly reduce their imports without hurting their own economies.
Oleg Ustenko, economic adviser to the Ukrainian president, recently penned an op-ed begging the world to cut off what he denounced as the “blood oil” of Russia, which supplies nearly $1 billion a day to Moscow and who, according to him, is financing the war. in Ukraine. “Don’t buy anything from Russia,” he wrote.
