Total Share Discussion Threads

[ariane] 14/2/2007 18:57

Total Raises Annual Output Growth Target Through 2010 (Update6)

By Tom Cahill and Tara Patel

Feb. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Total SA, Europe's third-biggest oil company, raised its growth forecast through 2010 after reporting a smaller drop in fourth-quarter profit than analysts had estimated.

Output growth will rise by an average 5 percent, compared with a previous forecast of 4 percent, Paris-based Total said today. Excluding the value of its stake in drugmaker Sanofi- Aventis SA, Total's profit fell 10 percent to 2.74 billion euros ($3.6 billion) from a year earlier. That beat the 2.65 billion- euro median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey.

Christophe de Margerie, who succeeds Thierry Desmarest today as chief executive officer, predicts Total will boost output at a faster rate than its main competitors, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc, until the end of the decade. Production will be buoyed by Angola's Dalia field, which started pumping crude in December, as well as the Joslyn heavy oil project in Canada.

``Total's efforts to increase production are starting to bear fruit,'' said Eric Doutrebente, who oversees $3.5 billion, including Total shares, at Toqueville Finance in Paris.

Shares of Total gained 75 cents, or 1.4 percent, to 53.25 euros in Paris. The stock rose 4.4 percent in 2006, its slowest pace of growth in four years.

Overall output will rise by 6 percent in 2007, down from an earlier projection of 7 percent, because of the impact of quota cuts from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the company said.

Militant Violence

The revised target anticipates that Nigerian production will continue to be disrupted by militant violence in the Niger Delta. Total sees a 2 percent drop in production from the region this year. ``Insecurity remains and I can't say we will see the end of it in 2007,'' de Margerie told reporters.

Total doesn't expect its Angolan output will be trimmed by the African nation's membership of OPEC from last month. ``Our information is that Angola will not be subject to quotas, like Iraq,'' de Margerie said. ``We have no worries on Angola with respect to OPEC right now.''

Still, Total expects to increase output at a faster rate than its rivals in the next few years. Shell, Europe's biggest oil company, predicts annual production will rise by 1 percent to 2 percent until 2010. BP, the second largest, has adopted an output target that equates to about 1.5 percent through 2012.

Fourth-quarter results were hurt by charges from the restructuring of its chemicals unit. Including the Sanofi stake, net income fell 5 percent to 2.2 billion euros from 2.34 billion euros, the company said.

`Low Point'

Production averaged 2.40 million barrels of oil and gas a day in the fourth quarter, compared with 2.46 million barrels a year ago.

Total has been trying to boost production after hitting what it called a ``low point'' of 2.29 million barrels of oil equivalent a day in the second quarter, hurt by shutdowns in Nigeria and the impact of high oil prices on production-sharing contracts.

Reserve replacement, a measure under U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules showing exploration performance, was 102 percent for the year, compared with 95 percent in 2005.

Total said it had 11.12 billions barrels of oil equivalent reserves at the end of 2006, compared with from 11.11 billion barrels at the end of 2005, according to SEC reporting standards.

Average annual output fell 5 percent last year to 2.36 million barrels a day of oil equivalent, from 2.49 million barrels a day in the previous year as new field start-ups failed to offset declines and because of disruptions in the North Sea.

Refining Margins

Total said last month profit from converting crude oil into gasoline, diesel and other products fell 50 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, when hurricanes shut down competing U.S. refineries. The average margin shrank to $22.80 a ton from $45.50 a year earlier amid warm weather at the end of 2006.

``Short term, we are more or less in line with our long-term view'' of refining margins, Michel Benezit, the head of Total's refining and marketing unit, said in an Feb. 1 interview. ``We were below that level in the last three weeks of the year and above it for the first 10 days of January. That's normal volatility.''

De Margerie was detained for 48 hours in October and placed under formal investigation by a French judge over a possible role in kickbacks paid to obtain Iraqi oil between 1996 to 2001, during the United Nations-supervised oil-for-food program.

Denies Wrongdoing

``There is nothing to prevent me from doing my job,'' he said. ``That is what I will do and it doesn't deserve more comment than that.'' Total has denied any wrongdoing in the affair.

In almost 12 years as chief, Desmarest increased Total's production more than sixfold, from about 345,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day in 1994. The company earned $654 million that year, compared with the 2006 profit of 12.6 billion euros, a record for France.

Total's profits have already made it a target of French politicians such as Socialist presidential candidate Segolene Royal, who has proposed a tax on the ``super profits'' of oil companies.

To contact the reporters on this story: Tom Cahill in Paris at [e-mail] ;

Last Updated: February 14, 2007 11:51 EST

[ariane] 14/2/2007 14:57

Total quarterly profits decline 4.7% on lower output

Wednesday, February 14, 2007 9:46:08 AM ET
newratings.com

LONDON, February 14 (newratings.com) – Europe-based oil refining giant Total SA (ticker: FP-EUR) Wednesday reported a 4.7% decline in its quarterly net profits due to lower hydrocarbon output and rising exploration costs.

Total posted net profits worth €2.23 billion in the October-December quarter, up from €2.34 billion posted in the year-ago period. Excluding special items and charges related to the Sanofi-Aventis merger, Total's adjusted net profits came in at €2.78 billion in the fourth quarter, down 10% from the previous year.

Total raised its average annual growth forecast for its oil and gas output during 2006-2010 to 5%, from the earlier guided 4%. Total's total hydrocarbon output declined 2% to 2.4 million barrels of oil equivalent a day in the fourth quarter, from 2.46 million a year earlier. The decline in output was due to major production disruptions in Nigeria.Total's output for the whole of 2006 stood at 2.36 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, down 5% from 2.45 million in 2005. The company's annual net profits declined 4% to €11.77 billion, from €12.27 billion reported in 2005. Total guided to a 6% increase in its total output during 2007, as compared to the earlier projected 7%.

[ariane] 14/2/2007 10:58

Total has no current nuclear power plan; not interested in Suez ops UPDATE


(updates with comments on Suez)
PARIS (AFX) - Total has no current plan to diversify into nuclear energy
even though "it will certainly come one day," new CEO Christophe de Margerie
told a press conference.
He said Total is not interested in getting involved in Suez' nuclear
operations.
A comment by Margerie last week about the company's interest in nuclear
power triggered speculation that Total could seek some of Suez' nuclear
operations if the planned merger between Suez and Gaz de France is not
concluded.
At the news conference, Margerie also said Total still seeks to get involved
in a major long-term project in Russia.
[e-mail]
afp/mjs/rar

[ariane] 14/2/2007 09:39

Total has no current plan to diversify into nuclear; says will happen 'one day'


PARIS (AFX) - Total is not planning to diversify into nuclear energy
currently even though "it will certainly come one day," new CEO Christophe de
Margerie told a press conference.
He also said Total still seeks to get involved in a major long-term project
in Russia.
[e-mail]
afp/mjs/jsa

[ariane] 14/2/2007 07:55

Total Q4 adjusted net 2.74 bln eur, in line; sees 2007 oil/gas output up 6 pct


PARIS (AFX) - Total said fourth quarter adjusted net profit was 2.74 bln
eur, down 10 pct from a year earlier and in line with analysts' expectations,
amid falling oil prices, reduced refining margins, a weak dollar and rising
costs.
It plans to continue building up oil and gas output more strongly than its
European peers, with production in 2007 to rise up by 6 pct and production over
the 2006-2010 period averaging 5 pct annual growth.
Growth in Total's liquefied natural gas operations is seen at 13 pct per
year through 2010.
The company plans a 15 pct rise in its full year dividend for 2006, to 1.87
eur. It pledged to pursue a "dynamic" dividend policy and said it may engage in
share buybacks from its cash flow.
It called the oil market environment "generally favourable" for the company
since the start of 2007.
Investments this year are budgeted at 16 bln usd, with 75 pct earmarked for
exploration and production.


[e-mail]
mjs/jlw

[ariane] 12/2/2007 07:19

Total's incoming CEO de Margerie to keep focus on trouble spots


LONDON (AFX) - Incoming Total SA CEO Christophe de Margerie said in an
interview with the Financial Times that the company is unafraid of getting
involved the world's trouble spots.
Commenting on Total's activities in the Persian Gulf region after the
Iran-Iraq war, Margerie said: "We had the same strategy vis-a-vis the two
countries, which was: 'Well, they would be certainly desperate to get access to
manpower, in terms of management, money and it might be the right time to come
back when nobody is ready to do it -- not because of laws, because at that time
there was no embargo, no fights, but people were scared to work in the Middle
East'."
He told the newspaper: "I believe the only chance in the world is through
communication, contact and by trying to persuade people. It is true that then
you meet people that might not be of the acceptable standard and then others
tell you that you are not doing things properly. I can tell you, I don't care
about it, except if it has an impact on my company."
Last year, de Margerie spent two days in a prison being questioned by French
investigators over whether he paid kickbacks to Iraqi officials while the
country was still under UN sanctions -- an allegation he said is nonsense.
"They know everything about what I have been doing," he said. "You think I
go to see people to talk about redistribution of money and money-laundering? Who
can believe this, except people who like to make stories?"
De Margerie says he will not change the policy that has seen Total sell its
US assets to make it easier to keep those in places such as Iran and Myanmar.
[e-mail]
jsa

[waldron] 10/2/2007 05:51

Attention Business, Foreign, National And Energy Editors:

Platts Survey: OPEC Oil Output Falls in January, But Above Target
LONDON, Feb. 9 /CNW/ -- Platts--The 10 OPEC members bound by the cartel's
output agreements produced an average 26.95 million barrels per day (b/d) in
January, down 50,000 b/d from December's 27 million b/d, but still well above
the group's November 2006 and February 2007 targets, a Platts survey showed
February 9.
Total OPEC output, including volumes from Iraq and new member Angola,
averaged 30.11 million b/d in January, 1.21 million b/d higher than December's
28.9 million b/d, the survey showed. Iraq does not participate in OPEC output
agreements, while Angola, whose membership of the cartel is just over a month
old, has yet to accept or be allocated any output target.
The survey showed that the so-called OPEC-10 in January were still
650,000 b/d above their 26.3 million b/d target output level which came into
effect on November 1, 2006. This target was superseded on February 1, 2007 by
a new, lower output target of 25.8 million b/d following OPEC's mid-December
decision to expand the 1.2 million b/d production cut agreed in October to 1.7
million b/d.
"OPEC's output has not declined much from what it was in December, but
from OPEC's perspective, that's OK," says John Kingston, Platts global
director of oil. "Firm prices near $60 mean the group's current production
levels are not excessive relative to demand."
But the second quarter looms, and that is traditionally the weakest
demand quarter, he cautions. "If OPEC wants to defend current prices near $60
it may prove difficult to do if the group's production levels stay just under
27 million barrels per day. Most other projections see the market's need for
OPEC oil in the second quarter to be less than that."
Output decreases totaling 70,000 b/d from Algeria, Libya, Saudi Arabia
and Venezuela were partly offset by a 20,000 increase in Nigerian production,
which edged up to 2.25 million b/d from 2.23 million b/d.
Iraqi volumes were sharply down in January, partly as a result of the
main Gulf export terminal at al-Basrah being closed for three days to install
refurbished measuring meters. Bad weather also took its toll on exports.

The survey estimated Angolan production at 1.5 million b/d. Angolan
production has been rising steadily in recent years. Oil minister Desiderio da
Graca Verissimo e Costa said in December that Angola was aiming to achieve
crude production of 2 million b/d by mid-2007, several months earlier than
previously targeted.




Platts, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), is a leading
global provider of energy and metals information. With nearly a century of
business experience, Platts serves customers across more than 150 countries.
From 14 offices worldwide, Platts serves the oil, natural gas, electricity,
nuclear power, coal, petrochemical and metals markets. Platts' real time news,
pricing, analytical services, and conferences help markets operate with
transparency and efficiency. Traders, risk managers, analysts, and industry
leaders depend upon Platts to help them make better trading and investment
decisions. Additional information is available at


Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading
global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial
services, education and business information markets through leading brands
such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power
and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries.
Sales in 2006 were $6.3 billion. Additional information is available at





For further information: Kathleen Tanzy [phone], Europe: Shiona
Ramage [phone], Asia: Casey Yew [phone] Web Site:

[waldron] 07/2/2007 07:48

MARKET SENTIMENT
-Publicis upgraded to 'outperform' from 'neutral' at Credit Suisse after Q4
sales
-Total upgraded to 'overweight' from 'neutral' by JP Morgan, target 59 eur
-Faurecia upgraded to 'hold' from 'sell' by Citigroup, target 52 eur vs 38
eur
-Vivendi downgraded to 'underweight' from 'equal-weight' by Lehman


[e-mail]
js/gp

[waldron] 05/2/2007 07:25

Total sets sights on nuclear energy - incoming CEO


PARIS (AFX) - Total SA is setting its sights on nuclear energy as access to
oil and gas becomes more restricted and countries unwilling to allow foreign
investment in their most precious resource.
Christophe de Margerie, who will take over as the company's CEO next month,
said in an interview with the Financial Times: "Being in the energy business,
... we will certainly one day have to be part of this (nuclear) adventure."
He said there is no immediate concern but, as access to hydrocarbons becomes
more difficult, Total is having to branch out into other forms of energy.
Renewables will only satisfy a small portion of the world's overall energy
needs, he added.


[e-mail]
jms

[waldron] 05/2/2007 04:41

Total says it is certain to enter nuclear sector
By Carola Hoyos in London

Published: February 5 2007 02:00 | Last updated: February 5 2007 02:00

Total, the French energy group, is setting its sights on nuclear energy as access to oil and gas becomes more restricted and countries unwilling to allow foreign investment in their most precious resource.

Christophe de Margerie, who will take over as Total's chief executive next month, said in an interview: "Being in the energy business, [which] we consider not only as our business but also as a responsibility vis à vis the consumers, we will certainly one day have to be part of this [nuclear] adventure."

He said that it was not an immediate concern, but, as access to hydrocarbons became more difficult, Total was having to branch out into other forms of energy. Renewables would only satisfy a small portion of the world's overall energy needs, he said, though theywould be important incountries that lacked oil and gas.

So for Total, he said rhetorically: "If it is not hydrocarbons, if it is not renewables, if it is not nuclear, what is it?"

As oil prices have risen, opportunities for inter-national oil companies have dried up. Countries such as Russia, Venezuela and Algeria have reasserted control over their oil and gas fields, and others, including Mexico, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, have kept the door to international investment in their most precious resources tightly shut.

About 80 per cent of the world's oil is now controlled by national oil companies, leaving international oil companies struggling to replace their reserves and increase production.

Total has been one of the more successful companies in raising production, but has recently run intoroadblocks in Russia and Venezuela.

But Total's interest in nuclear is not only a sign of the oil industry's struggles; it is also an indication of the changing attitude towards atomic energy.

Nuclear is becoming a more acceptable choice in countries such as Finland, the US and the UK as governments worry about energy security and carbon emissions and voters gasp at the size of their gas bills.

China, which needs energy to continue its impressive economic growth without asphyxiating its cities with smog, wants almost todouble its nuclear energyproduction by 2020.

In fact, in the past Mr de Margerie has played down Total's interest in nuclear, even when Total was considering it in narrowly defined terms, most notably as a replacement for natural gas in the extraction of oil from Canadian tar sands.

"We don't have any serious idea of what nuclear can bring to the extraction of bitumen," he said inSep-tember 2005.

Mr de Margerie's comment came after Ralph Klein, Alberta's premier, had reacted angrily to statements by Total's head of natural gas and power that Areva, France's nuclear group, was studying the option of building a small reactor for Total.

[waldron] 05/2/2007 04:36

Total's new chief broaden his horizons
By Carola Hoyos and Rebecca Bream in London

Published: February 4 2007 21:36 | Last updated: February 4 2007 21:36

Christophe de Margerie is a hydrocarbon man through and through. He made his mark cutting deals for Total, the French energy group, for oil and gas fields in the Middle East.

But when this month he takes over as chief executive of that company – the world's fifth-largest listed international energy group – he will have to broaden his horizons.

As access to oil and gas deposits become harder to secure and national oil companies gain prominence, international oil companies, such as Total, are beginning to look at nuclear power.

Benjamin Dell, analyst at Sanford Bernstein, the financial group, said: "In the long-term, it is evident that the world's energy needs will be met by a combination of sources, with natural gas and nuclear the areas of most rapid growth. Given this, it is a sector that is on the radar screens of senior management in the major oil companies for the 2015-2020 period and an area that warrants real consideration."

Until now, few chief executives have talked publicly about moving their companies into nuclear, in part because its very early days yet, but also because atomic energy is still a divisive issue and not great for public relations.

But Mr de Margerie, is known to be one of the frankest of his peers. He said in a recent interview: "What is clear is people have been over-optimistic about the possibility to develop so many fields at the same time and bringing the potential capacity to 120m barrels a day [from today's 85m b/d]."

Although it is not on the cards today, nuclear is a definite consideration for the longer term, he said, citing the minimal global reach of renewable energy.

In fact, Total has already made a limited foray into nuclear, holding a 1 per cent stake in French nuclear group Areva. There were rumours a few years ago that Total wanted to increase its stake in Areva, which produces nuclear fuel and makes nuclear reactors. It is not clear whether Total will try to forge closer links with Areva in the future, but Thierry Desmarest, Total's outgoing chief executive who will remain its chairman, took a first step in that direction by joining the board of Areva last year.

One area of co-operation between the oil and nuclear industries in the near term is in Canada, where the building of new nuclear plants to provide energy for oil sands extraction is being discussed.

Atomic Energy of Canada, the Canadian state-owned nuclear group, said last month that it was working with Energy Alberta Corp on a possible power plant to provide the large amounts of energy needed to extract oil from the oil sands.

Total is not the only international oil company giving nuclear a chance. ExxonMobil, which had a large nuclear division until the 1980s, has not ruled out returning to atomic energy in a decade or so.

To get exposure to the fast-growing nuclear industry, oil companies could look at a range of investments, from uranium mining upstream to building power plants and electricity generation downstream.

One of the most fertile areas for oil company involvement might be building new nuclear power plants with electricity suppliers and others. In China alone, 30 new reactors worth more than $50bn are planned before 2020. Building nuclear power plants is also expensive, but the oil industry has no lack of cash and might decide that nuclear is an attractive avenue if oil is no longer a growth option.

[ariane] 03/2/2007 08:59

Total SA's Next 'King of Crude'
By David Gauthier-Villars
Word Count: 1,333 | Companies Featured in This Article: Total, Exxon Mobil, BP, Royal Dutch Shell
Paris

In 1995, the giant French oil company Total SA ignored U.S. calls to boycott Iran, and instead drilled there -- planting the French flag in one of the world's largest pools of oil and natural gas. The man in charge of the project: Christophe de Margerie.

Today, the 55-year-old executive, known as "Big Moustache" for his bushy handlebar, is set to take the helm of Total, the world's fourth-largest oil company by market value.

Mr. de Margerie is scheduled to take over Total on Feb. 14 with several controversies still looming large. He expresses a continuing desire to do ...

[grupo guitarlumber] 02/2/2007 09:56

Total buys main part of offshore Australia permit from Apache; to be operator


PARIS (AFX) - Total said it has bought an 80 pct stake in the main part of
an offshore Australia oil and gas permit from Apache Corp for an undisclosed
sum, and will become its operator, while Apache retains the other 20 pct.
Total's stake involves depths of more than 4,000 metres.
Apache will keep a 100 pct stake in the upper part of the
4,415-square-kilometre block.
[e-mail]
mjs/jag

[ariane] 30/1/2007 09:57

Total says 3 offshore gas finds to ensure continued supplies from Thailand


PARIS (AFX) - Total said it has made three new gas discoveries in the Gulf
of Thailand that will ensure its continued ability to supply gas from the
country.
The discoveries were in blocks 15 and 16 in the Gulf of Thailand.
Production from the sites is planned to start in 2009.
[e-mail]
mjs/jr

[waldron] 29/1/2007 08:18

Gazprom resumes Shtokman talks with Total, Chevron, Conoco, Statoil, Norsk Hydro


PARIS (AFX) - Gazprom has resumed talks with Total, Chevron, ConocoPhillips,
Statoil and Norsk Hydro on jointly developing the giant Shtokman gas field, the
daily Les Echos said, citing comments in Davos by Gazprom vice president
Alexander Medvedev.
[e-mail]
mjs/tw

[ariane] 27/1/2007 18:11

Russia to Prepare Bill Limiting Foreign Ownership Within Months

By Torrey Clark

Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Russia will submit to parliament a bill that limits foreign ownership in strategic industries, such as oil, gas, metals and defense, in the ``coming months,'' Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said today.

The bill will be ``clear, fully balanced and answer all questions that arise in daily practice,'' Medvedev said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos today. ``The worst thing in business is opacity and unpredictability.''

President Vladimir Putin in May 2005 ordered the government to draft legislation spelling out restrictions on foreign ownership in industries that relate to state security, such as infrastructure, defense, the so-called natural monopolies of power and natural gas and strategic mineral resource deposits.

Russia has tightened its grip on its natural resource wealth, which underpins the country's economy. Last month, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and its partners agreed to sell a majority stake in the Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project in the Russian Far East to state-controlled OAO Gazprom. Sakhalin was the only major oil and gas project fully owned by foreign investors.

To contact the reporter on this story: Torrey Clark in Moscow at [e-mail] .

Last Updated: January 27, 2007 11:07 EST

[Abuse team] 24/1/2007 09:09

Post removed by ADVFN

[waldron] 24/1/2007 09:09

Total declines to comment on rumour it is mulling 90 cad/share bid for Nexen


PARIS (AFX) - Total declined to comment on a market rumour that it is
mulling a 20 mln cad bid for Canadian oil company Nexen at 90 cad/share.
Nexen shares jumped 3.8 pct to 69.34 cad yesterday.
The Toronto newspaper Globe & Mail quoted a Calgary investor as saying:
"Everybody's heard this rumour and this number."
Nexen is active in Canada's Athabasca oil sands, the Gulf of Mexico, the
North Sea, the Middle East and western Africa.
[e-mail]
mjs/jsa

[waldron] 23/1/2007 12:17

Total oil project in Russia coveted by state-owned firm - press


MOSCOW (AFX) - An oil project in northern Russia, operated by the French
group Total and the target of criticism by Russian auditors, has attracted the
interest of authorities here who want the Russian public company Zarubejneft to
be given a stake, press reports said here today.
"Zarubejneft is going to participate in the Total project," said the
Kommersant newspaper, citing a source close to the matter.
"The fate of Sakhalkin-1 and Sakhalin-2 awaits the (Total-operated) Kharyaga
field."
The state-controlled Russian company Rosneft now has a 20 pct interest in
ExxonMobil's Sakhalin-1 energy project while another Russian state enterprise,
Gazprom, late last year took control of Sakhalin-2 from the Anglo-Dutch group
Shell.
The acquisition followed accusations against Shell of environmental
violations that were seen as pressure by the Russian state to ensure Gazprom's
participation.
Questioned by AFP, Total and Zarubejneft representative had no comment on
the Kommersant report.
The paper said the Kharyaga project is now the only energy sector
production-sharing operation in which Russian interests are less than 10 pct.
"That is why, as in Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2, a large state company could
gain entry (into Kharyaga)," it added.
Total controls 50 pct of the field, the Norwegian group Norsk Hydro 40 pct
and local authorities 10 pct.
Russian authorities yesterday accused Total of violating the country's
environmental regulations in its exploitation at Kharyaga.

[e-mail]
afp/amb