TotalEnergies SE (NYSE:TTE) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

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And we will be able probably to announce soon what we will do. But we are aligned, same view when Shell to try to maintain an SPV on the gas. And it’s aligned with the NNPC, I would say, GMD, they want. And again, it’s consistent. We cannot launch a new train in LNG and not taking care of the upstream gas and relying on others. We will never manage that because in the Nigerian system, most of the value is in the downstream, not on the upstream. This is where today we have some disconnect with some of our partners. But we are aligned on it. Fundamentally because producing this oil in the Niger delta, is not in line with our HSE policies. It’s a real difficulty. So, we have some buyers, but we want to put that in order. And we were waiting to see – we wanted to respect Shell first before to move ourselves, with – in connection with Nigerian authorities, because at the end, we need the approval.

So, I went to Nigeria and to Lagos. We discussed. And we want to do that in, I would say in partnership, not aggressively. If you are aggressive, they can stop you or not then, it’s a mess. So, we want to do that in good intelligence with the Nigerian authorities. Oman LNG, you are the one who follow us very carefully. It’s a decision we have to take in ‘24, do we proceed or not. The reality is that we have that option, of course, and which is a good and attractive option. But Oman has other plans as well to develop another train on Oman LNG. So, there is a debate of allocation of the gas today. We will do that as well in connection with the Omani authorities.

Bertrand Hodee: A very small one. It’s a follow-up on Nigeria, on Train 7. Do you believe there will be enough gas, or the other way to say that is that the plant will be delayed if there is no enough gas, and when do you anticipate Train 7 in Nigeria to start up?

Patrick Pouyanné: I think I answered to you in my previous answer. Okay. It’s part of the story of the gas. There is – I said clearly to my colleagues and to Nadia [ph], it will be crazy to have a train with no gas. So, I want gas. But the gas is part of all these developments. And okay, that’s one of the complexity. We are working actively on this one.

Renaud Lions: Okay. I think we covered everything.

Patrick Pouyanné: Yes. So, it’s exactly 11:45. I know that we have our Norwegian friends this afternoon in London, that you will rush to listen to – no, we are in good connections. We have put our sequence before earlier this morning, we asked you to come, not to have any overlap. So, we take care of you. So, it’s – the two teams are connecting regularly in order to organize it for you. So, thank you for your attendance this morning. Thank you for – I think you know honestly, as a conclusion, I would say we have a clear strategy. We are consistent in terms of execution. We don’t change. I think it’s a clear message. And I think in this energy business, maybe because I am there for 10 years and for some years, my lesson is, let’s be – stick on what you think.

And including in the distribution policy, try to establish a clear framework rather than moving around permanently. I think it took time to me to understand it, but no, I am there and I am sticking on it. So, maybe for the hedge funds, it’s not a lot of fun, but for our long-term shareholders, it’s a lot of fun. It’s better. And we are more targeting this type of shareholders for making these companies a success. Thank you.

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