Total Share Discussion Threads

[grupo] 23/5/2019 08:38

Angola's Sonangol awards annual oil products tender to Total and Trafigura

Author Eklavya Gupte Editor Dan Lalor Commodity Oil

London — Angola has signed up French oil company Total and trading house Trafigura to provide imports of key refined oil products such as gasoil, gasoline and marine gasoil for the next 12 months, state-owned Sonangol said.



The news came as Africa's second-largest oil producer, which is heavily reliant on refined product imports, has been experiencing a fuel crisis due to a lack of foreign exchange.

Total will supply Angola with gasoline for the next 12 months, while Trafigura will be responsible for imports of gasoil and marine gasoil. Angola depends on refined product imports for more than 80% of its total demand due to a shortage of refining capacity.

[waldron] 22/5/2019 17:11

FTSE 100
7,334.19 +0.07%
Dow Jones
25,808.91 -0.26%
CAC 40
5,378.98 -0.12%

Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 70.73 -2.01%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.96 -2.04%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.57 -1.61%


(WTI) - 22/05 17:59:17
61.27 USD -2.37%


Eni
14.418 -0.84%


Total
49.005 -1.53%


Engie
12.82 -0.12%

Orange
13.87 -0.11%


Bp
560.5 +0.07%

Vodafone
125.66 -0.29%

Royal Dutch Shell
2,539 +0.02%


Royal Dutch Shell
2,553 +0.22%

[waldron] 21/5/2019 18:56

Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 72.10 +0.18%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.99 +0.43%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.61 -2.21%

(WTI) - 21/05 19:41:27
63.16 USD -0.35%

FTSE 100
7,328.92 +0.25%
Dow Jones
25,849.04 +0.66%
CAC 40
5,385.46 +0.50%

Eni
14.54 +0.86%

Total
49.765 +1.10%

Engie
12.835 -5.31%

Orange
13.885 -0.54%


Bp
560.1 +0.52%

Vodafone
126.02 -0.30%

Royal Dutch Shell
2,538.5 -0.02%


Royal Dutch Shell
2,547.5 +0.30%

[grupo] 21/5/2019 06:30

EXTRACT SEKING ALPHA

Conclusion and Technical Analysis

Total S.A. is a reliable company which ought to be part of your long-term portfolio.

One important takeaway is that the company expects 25% increase in profits this year, and by 2020, it will reach $14 billion, a substantial hike from the current trailing 12-month of about $11 billion. LNG production is expected to jump by 40% in 2019 with eight new project ramp-ups or start-ups.

Total's portfolio of LNG projects is extensive and is still boosting its LNG exposure. In the conference call, the company said:

By 2020, we expect our LNG business to grow to 40 million tonnes a year or 10% of the global market. And the new iGRP segment provides us with a platform to effectively optimize profitability along the entire LNG value chain. The iGRP segment is active in many growing markets.

Finally, earlier this month, the company declared that it has entered into a binding agreement with Occidental Petroleum (OXY) to acquire Anadarko Petroleum Corporation's (APC) assets in Africa (Algeria, Ghana, Mozambique and South Africa) for a consideration of $8.8 billion.

Anadarko's African assets represent nearly 1.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent of 2P reserves, of which 70% is gas.

Technical Analysis

TOT is forming a symmetrical wedge pattern with line resistance at $57 (I recommend selling about 15% between $57 and $59 depending on oil prices) and line support at $52.25 (I recommend adding and accumulating between $52.25 and $50, which is a double-bottom potential).

[grupo] 20/5/2019 19:07

EU is growing market for US liquefied natural gas
By:
Gavin O'Toole
3 May 19

European imports of US liquefied natural gas are soaring, increasing by 272% in the nine months since an energy cooperation deal was agreed in 2018.

Nearly 30% of American LNG exports are now destined for Europe according to official data – up dramatically from just 5% in 2016.

The latest figures on this booming transatlantic trade come as energy executives gather in Brussels in a sign of strengthening EU–US energy cooperation to discuss further ways to enhance the trade in LNG.

“Energy security is one of the key success stories of our transatlantic cooperation and one where we both have a keen mutual interest,” EU commissioner for energy and climate Miguel Arias Cañete said after meeting US secretary of energy Rick Perry at the event.

“It is therefore our common objective to further deepen our energy cooperation. Natural gas will remain an important component of the EU’s energy mix in the near future as we move towards cleaner sources of energy.

“Given our heavy dependence on imports, US liquefied natural gas, if priced competitively, could play an increasing and strategic role in the EU gas supply.”

The EU gas market is the second largest in the world and European leaders see increased imports of US LNG as essential to their efforts to diversify supplies.

Gas has been identified as an important transition fuel in the EU’s efforts to decarbonise its economy, and European gas imports are projected to increase as domestic production falls.

The capacity to handle increasing imports are being expanded with the extension of a LNG terminal in Poland on the Baltic Sea coast and plans for another on the island of Krk in Croatia.

The EU is also supporting the development of LNG capacity in Greece, Spain, Ireland, Sweden and Cyprus and estimates that 23 member states will have access to the global LNG market by 2022.

With a share of 12.6% of European LNG imports in 2019 so far, the US is now Europe’s third largest supplier.

Speaking in Brussels, Perry said: “We share a history of transatlantic cooperation, through good times and bad, and together we promote our heritage of freedom.

“The strength of this relationship can particularly be seen in energy. When it comes to natural gas, we each have what the other needs to derive tremendous mutual benefit from advancing our energy relationship.”

Gavin O'Toole, expert on Latin America
Gavin O'Toole

A freelance journalist. He has written six books about Latin America and taught the politics of the region at Queen Mary, University of London.

[waldron] 20/5/2019 17:03

FTSE 100
7,310.88 -0.51%
Dow Jones
25,678.27 -0.33%
CAC 40
5,358.59 -1.46%


Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 72.39 +0.25%
Gasoline NYMEX 2.01 -0.42%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.67 +1.56%

(WTI) - 20/05 17:49:54
63.09 USD -0.47%


Eni
14.416 -2.86%


Total
49.225 +0.11%

Engie
13.555 -0.18%

Orange
13.96 +0.98%

Bp
557.2 +0.22%

Vodafone
126.4 +1.71%

Royal Dutch Shell
2,539 +0.12%


Royal Dutch Shell
2,540 -0.06%

[waldron] 17/5/2019 17:35

FTSE 100
7,348.62 -0.07%
Dow Jones
25,852.11 -0.04%
CAC 40
5,438.23 -0.18%


Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 72.14 -0.66%
Gasoline NYMEX 2.01 -0.76%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.64 -0.08%


(WTI) - 17/05 18:21:18
62.7 USD -0.76%



Eni
14.84 +0.61%


Total
49.17 +1.16%


Engie
13.58 -1.74%

Orange
13.825 +0.33%



Bp
556 +1.15%

Vodafone
124.28 -0.46%

Royal Dutch Shell
2,536 +0.58%


Royal Dutch Shell
2,541.5 +0.40%

[grupo] 16/5/2019 17:32

No, The Oil Glut Hasn’t Disappeared
By Nick Cunningham - May 16, 2019, 11:00 AM CDT
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Global oil demand may be a bit lower this year than previously thought, weighed down by weaker consumption rates in emerging markets.

The International Energy Agency lowered its demand growth projection for 2019 by 90,000 barrels per day to 1.3 million barrels per day (mb/d). It also revised down its 2018 demand figure by 70,000 bpd to 1.2 mb/d.

In the first quarter, demand in Brazil, China, Japan, Korea, Nigeria, and elsewhere came in lower by about 410,000 bpd than the IEA previously expected. First quarter demand was up 640,000 bpd from the same period a year earlier, but that was down from last month’s forecast of a 1 mb/d year-on-year increase. Importantly, while non-OECD demand was up strongly, OECD demand actually contracted by 300,000 bpd in the first quarter, the second consecutive quarterly decrease.

The agency said that the dip is likely temporary, and demand should pick up over the course of the year. The first quarter may be chalked up to a “tough quarter rather than the start of a new trend,” the IEA said.

But the lower demand figure ultimately meant that the global oil market was in surplus in the first quarter by about 0.7 mb/d, a larger glut than expected.

“As we move through 2Q19, while there is considerable uncertainty on the supply side, it is highly likely that the implied balance will flip into an indicative deficit of about the same size,” the IEA said in its report. “Stocks in the OECD at the start of April have fallen back to the level seen in July in terms of days of forward cover and other stock indicators are pointing in the same direction.”
Related: Putin Could Cut His Loss As Venezuelan Oil Output Nosedives

But the U.S.-China trade war could complicate this rather sanguine outlook. The OECD estimates that last year’s round of tariffs shaved off a quarter percentage point from GDP in both countries. The latest increase in tariffs could double the impact to a half percentage point by 2020.

Another potential round of tariffs looms. Trump threatened to put levies on the remaining $300 billion or so of Chinese imports, which could happen in a few months if a deal is not reached. If that occurred, GDP would dip by three quarters of a percentage point and global trade would fall by 1 percent. “Needless to say, such a downward revision to GDP and trade growth would have negative implications for oil demand,” the IEA warned.
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On the supply side, the outlook is “confusing,221; the IEA conceded. Rapid declines in Venezuela and Iran combine with unrest in Libya and the sudden flare up of attacks in the Arabian Peninsula. The contamination issue related to Russian oil traveling through the 1.4 mb/d Druzhba pipeline will be resolved “in due course,” but it could result in a “loss of confidence in the quality” of the oil coming from Russia, which may “intensify price pressures for heavy/medium sour crude oil,” the IEA added.

Overall, global oil supply declined by 300,000 bpd in April to 99.3 mb/d, “led by losses in Canada, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Iran,” the IEA said. However, production increases in Brazil, the U.S., and (surprisingly) in Libya and Nigeria mitigated the supply losses.

Related: New York Ditches Gas Pipeline Proposal Despite Soaring Electricity Bills

Some of the outages are related to maintenance, which should ease. In June, for instance, maintenance in the North Sea is expected to take some barrels offline for a period of time. However, even as these projects come back online and supply rebounds, the “pace of growth will ease further,” the IEA said.“A slowdown in drilling, lower capital allocations and faster base declines underpin our weaker growth projections for the US,” the IEA said. “Expansions in Canada, which averaged nearly 400 kb/d last year, have stalled and further declines are expected in the North Sea.” Higher spending in China could reverse losses, while production should grow in Brazil.

In total, non-OPEC supply growth is expected to reach 1.9 mb/d this year, down from 2.8 mb/d in 2018.

Putting it together, prices are largely trading at about the same levels as a month ago, but the one notable change is the shift in the futures curve. A steeper backwardation – in which near-term contracts trade at a premium to longer-dated futures – suggests tightness in the market. As the IEA notes, front-month oil futures are trading $3 per barrel higher than contracts six months out.

The end result is that the oil market is sending “mixed signals,” the IEA said. Weaker demand combined with supply outages and slowing but still significant production growth – it paints a confusing picture in which the market is tightening, but not overly so.

By Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com

[waldron] 16/5/2019 17:01

FTSE 100
7,353.51 +0.78%
Dow Jones
25,929.89 +1.10%
CAC 40
5,448.11 +1.37%


Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 73.19 +1.98%
Gasoline NYMEX 2.03 +2.52%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.64 +1.31%

(WTI) - 16/05 17:48:40
63.23 USD +1.64%


Eni
14.75 +1.60%


Total
48.605 +1.83%


Engie
13.82 +1.54%

Orange
13.78 +0.95%



Bp
549.7 +1.91%

Vodafone
124.86 -0.90%

Royal Dutch Shell
2,521.5 +0.10%


Royal Dutch Shell
2,531.5 +0.22%

[sarkasm] 16/5/2019 09:21

KAMPALA Uganda--Uganda has agreed a marginal hike to the tariff it will pay to ship crude through a planned export pipeline, unlocking the latest hurdle for the long awaited development of the East African nation's vast oil fields, the energy and minerals minister said Thursday.

After months of negotiations, Uganda agreed to pay $12.70, up from the original $12.20, for each barrel shipped through the planned 800-mile pipeline to the Indian Ocean port of Tanga in Tanzania, Irene Muloni said.

It's boost for the country's efforts to develop it's vast crude oil fields, estimated to contain as much as 6 billion barrels, whose development has stalled for years due to lack of infrastructure facilities such as an export pipeline or a refinery.

"Government has reached an agreement with joint-venture partners on the tariff and the business model for the project is being reviewed to reflect the new position," Ms. Muloni said.

The joint-venture partners, including French oil giant Total SA (FP.FR), have been pushing for a higher tariff ahead of financial close for the $3.5 billion project, amid renewed fears about future global oil prices. A spokeswoman for Total's unit in Uganda couldn't be reached for immediate comment.

Total, China's CNOOC Ltd. (0883.HK) and the U.K.'s Tullow Oil PLC (TLW.LN) are currently developing the oil fields, and hope to produce as much as 220,000 barrels a day by 2023.

South Africa's Standard Bank and Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. are helping in raising credit to fund the pipeline project.

Uganda's hosts East Africa's largest undeveloped oil assets and their commercialization could turn this coffee growing nation into a major oil producer in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, Fitch Solutions warns that delayed construction of the pipeline poses significant downside risk to the sector.



Write to Nicholas Bariyo at [e-mail]



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 16, 2019 03:41 ET (07:41 GMT)

[waldron] 15/5/2019 17:26

FTSE 100
7,296.95 +0.76%
Dow Jones
25,677.07 +0.57%
CAC 40
5,374.26 +0.62%


Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 71.99 +1.05%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.99 +1.97%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.62 -1.58%

(WTI) - 15/05 18:13:04
62.08 USD +1.32%



Eni
14.518 -0.59%



Total
47.73 +0.70%


Engie
13.61 +1.26%

Orange
13.65 -0.07%


Bp
539.4 +0.90%

Vodafone
126 -0.66%

Royal Dutch Shell
2,519 +1.14%


Royal Dutch Shell
2,526 +1.14%

[waldron] 14/5/2019 17:16

FTSE 100
7,241.6 +1.09%
Dow Jones
25,652.93 +1.29%
CAC 40
5,341.35 +1.50%


Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 71.43 +1.71%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.98 +1.07%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.65 +1.07%

(WTI) - 14/05 18:03:06
62.03 USD +1.79%



Total
47.4 +1.14%

Engie
13.44 +1.86%

Orange
13.66 +1.04%

Eni
14.604 +1.26%


BP
534.6 +1.58%

Vodafone
126.84 -3.75%

Shell A
2,490.5 +1.76%


Shell B
2,497.5 +1.61%

[waldron] 14/5/2019 15:30

14/05/2019 | 3:27 p.m.

Regulatory News:

Total (Paris: FP) (LSE: TTA) (NYSE: TOT):

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) production began on the first liquefaction train of the Cameron LNG project. LNG exports will begin in the coming weeks.

"The start of LNG production marks a milestone for Cameron LNG. This beautiful achievement is the fruit of the work done by all the teams and partners of the project. Total's commitment to the Cameron LNG project and its expansion is part of our strategy to strengthen our position in the US LNG market. This start-up allows us to become an integrated player along the gas value chain in the United States, where we are already a gas producer, "said Patrick Pouyanné, Chief Executive Officer of Total.

Total has joined the Cameron LNG project through the acquisition of Engie's LNG Upstream portfolio in 2018. The first phase of Cameron LNG with a capacity of 13.5 million tonnes per year (Mtpa) includes three liquefied natural gas trains. a capacity of 4.5 Mtpa each. Trains 2 and 3 are under construction and should start in early and mid-2020 respectively.

The project is operated by Cameron LNG LLC, jointly owned by Sempra Energy (50.2%), Total (16.6%), Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (16.6%) and Mitsubishi / NYK (16.6%).

In addition, Cameron LNG shareholders are discussing a possible extension of the initial project, already authorized by the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which would add two liquefaction trains with a capacity of 4.5 Mtpa each as well as two additional LNG storage tanks.

Total, the world's second largest private LNG player

Total is the second largest private global player in LNG, with a global LNG portfolio of nearly 40 Mtpa by 2020 and a global market share of 10%. With 21.8 million tonnes of LNG managed in 2018, the group enjoys strong and diversified positions throughout the LNG value chain. Through its interests in liquefaction plants in Qatar, Nigeria, Russia, Norway, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, Australia, Angola and Yemen, the Group markets liquefied natural gas. all markets.

About Total

Total is a major player in the energy sector, which produces and markets fuels, natural gas and low-carbon electricity. Our 100,000 employees are committed to a better, safer, more affordable, cleaner and more accessible energy. Present in over 130 countries, our ambition is to become the leader in responsible energy.

* * * * *

[waldron] 13/5/2019 17:14

FTSE 100
7,163.68 -0.55%
Dow Jones
25,313.7 -2.42%
CAC 40
5,262.57 -1.22%

Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 70.15 -0.67%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.97 -0.76%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.62 +0.00%

(WTI) - 13/05 18:01:12
61.16 USD -0.20%


Eni
14.422 +1.09%



Total
46.865 -0.01%

Engie
13.195 +0.57%

Orange
13.52 -1.53%


BP
526.3 +0.40%

Vodafone
131.78 -5.19%

Shell A
2,447.5 +0.87%


Shell B
2,458 +1.03%

[grupo] 13/5/2019 08:33

Total SA Buys Into Clean-Power Future -- WSJ
13/05/2019 8:02am
Dow Jones News

Shell A (LSE:RDSA)
Intraday Stock Chart

Today : Monday 13 May 2019
Click Here for more Shell A Charts.

Deal for Anadarko's African natural-gas assets part of a move away from crude

By Neanda Salvaterra

This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (May 13, 2019).

Total SA's deal to buy Anadarko Petroleum Corp.'s assets in Africa cements the French oil major's position as the world's second-largest provider of liquefied natural gas while pushing its business deeper into dangerous parts of the world.

Total said earlier this week that it agreed to buy Anadarko's African assets for $8.8 billion in a transaction that would help Occidental Petroleum Corp. finance its takeover of the Texas-based oil producer. The deal was a key part of Occidental's victory over Chevron Corp. as the companies vied to buy Anadarko and its coveted U.S. shale holdings.

If the sale goes through, Total will inherit projects across Algeria, Ghana, Mozambique and South Africa containing 1.2 billion barrels of oil-equivalent of proved and probable reserves, of which 70% is natural gas. The assets help Total gain ground on Royal Dutch Shell PLC, the market leader in natural gas, and brings it closer to its stated goal of becoming a cleaner company with a portfolio that contains more natural gas than crude.

The Paris-based oil firm has completed a series of deals in recent years, including the purchase of French utility Engie SA's liquefied natural-gas business in 2017. Before the Anadarko deal, Total had about 10% of the liquefied natural-gas market, second to Royal Dutch Shell, which holds about 20%, analysts said.

Total said the deal should be cash-flow positive from 2020, even if benchmark oil prices fall below $50 a barrel, and the assets should generate more than $1 billion a year in free cash flow from 2025.

"Natural gas is at the heart of Total's strategy," Total Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne said at a gas conference in Shanghai last month. "We want to be integrated along the gas value chain to take full advantage of this growing energy source and discover new [liquefied natural gas] outlets."

Total has said it wants its portfolio to comprise 60% gas holdings by 2035, up from roughly 50% in 2018.

The company and other oil giants are moving into natural gas as oil consumption is expected to rise by 0.5% a year between now and 2040, according to consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, and some forecasters say demand could stop growing altogether within the next decade. As buyers pivot toward cleaner fuels, global demand for natural gas is expected to rise by 1.6% annually from 2016 to 2022, according to the International Energy Agency.

Natural-gas projects, though, tend to deliver lower returns than oil projects. The weighted average internal rate of return for liquefied natural-gas projects in the pipeline is about 13%, compared with 20% for deep-water projects and 51% for unconventional oil developments like shale, according to Wood Mackenzie.

Historically, Total has shown a higher tolerance than its peers for doing business in dangerous places. Still, taking over Anadarko's assets in Africa presents challenges for the company.

In a series of raids in February, insurgents in Mozambique attacked an Anadarko convoy in an area near the company's natural-gas development. The company placed its project-construction site on lockdown, and one Anadarko contractor was killed in the raids.

Total has joined with Algeria's government on oil-and-gas projects since the 1950s, but recent political turmoil in the country -- Africa's largest producer of natural gas -- delayed the progress of some new gas agreements, including deals with Anadarko and Exxon Mobil Corp.

Anadarko's Mozambique assets would give Total a big boost in the gas business. The region is home to one of the world's largest natural-gas deposits, just ahead of Egypt's giant Zohr offshore field.

Anadarko has been developing a liquefied natural-gas project off Mozambique's coast, which was expected to start producing in 2024. Total said it would inherit 26.5% participating interest and operator status in the Mozambique project, which represents 2 billion barrels of oil equivalent of long-term natural-gas resources.

"This Mozambique asset will be producing for decades, that positions Total in LNG into the middle of the century," said Stuart Joyner, an energy specialist at the research firm Redburn Partners.

Total's deal occurs as the major oil companies are under increasing pressure from policy makers and activist investors to comply with the 2015 Paris climate accord and lower global carbon emissions from fossil fuels, which have been linked to rising global temperatures.

A group of more than 4,500 shareholders working under the auspices of the Netherlands-based group Follow This have been pushing Royal Dutch Shell, BP PLC, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Equinor ASA to set and publish emissions targets that are aligned with the goals of the climate agreement.

Total so far hasn't been presented with a shareholder resolution to lower its carbon footprint, but the company is trying to get ahead of the curve, analysts say.

"This is all part of [Total's] broader strategic aim to shift towards a low carbon energy future," said Valentina Kretzschmar, a director at Wood Mackenzie.

Write to Neanda Salvaterra at [e-mail]



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 13, 2019 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)

[grupo] 12/5/2019 07:03

Total SA's deal to buy Anadarko Petroleum Corp.'s assets in Africa cements the French oil major's position as the world's second-largest provider of liquefied natural gas while pushing its business deeper into dangerous parts of the world.

Total said earlier this week that it agreed to buy Anadarko's African assets for $8.8 billion in a transaction that would help Occidental Petroleum Corp. finance its takeover of the Texas-based oil producer. The deal was a key part of Occidental's victory over Chevron Corp. as the companies vied to buy Anadarko and its coveted U.S. shale holdings.

If the sale goes through, Total will inherit projects across Algeria, Ghana, Mozambique and South Africa containing 1.2 billion barrels of oil-equivalent of proved and probable reserves, of which 70% is natural gas. The assets help Total gain ground on Royal Dutch Shell PLC, the market leader in natural gas, and brings it closer to its stated goal of becoming a cleaner company with a portfolio that contains more natural gas than crude.

The Paris-based oil firm has completed a series of deals in recent years, including the purchase of French utility Engie SA's liquefied natural-gas business in 2017. Before the Anadarko deal, Total had about 10% of the liquefied natural-gas market, second to Royal Dutch Shell, which holds about 20%, analysts said.

Total said the deal should be cash-flow positive from 2020, even if benchmark oil prices fall below $50 a barrel, and the assets should generate more than $1 billion a year in free cash flow from 2025.

"Natural gas is at the heart of Total's strategy," Total Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne said at a gas conference in Shanghai last month. "We want to be integrated along the gas value chain to take full advantage of this growing energy source and discover new [liquefied natural gas] outlets."

Total has said it wants its portfolio to comprise 60% gas holdings by 2035, up from roughly 50% in 2018.

The company and other oil giants are moving into natural gas as oil consumption is expected to rise by 0.5% a year between now and 2040, according to consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, and some forecasters say demand could stop growing altogether within the next decade. As buyers pivot toward cleaner fuels, global demand for natural gas is expected to rise by 1.6% annually from 2016 to 2022, according to the International Energy Agency.

Natural-gas projects, though, tend to deliver lower returns than oil projects. The weighted average internal rate of return for liquefied natural-gas projects in the pipeline is about 13%, compared with 20% for deep-water projects and 51% for unconventional oil developments like shale, according to Wood Mackenzie.

Historically, Total has shown a higher tolerance than its peers for doing business in dangerous places. Still, taking over Anadarko's assets in Africa presents challenges for the company.

In a series of raids in February, insurgents in Mozambique attacked an Anadarko convoy in an area near the company's natural-gas development. The company placed its project-construction site on lockdown, and one Anadarko contractor was killed in the raids.

Total has joined with Algeria's government on oil-and-gas projects since the 1950s, but recent political turmoil in the country -- Africa's largest producer of natural gas -- delayed the progress of some new gas agreements, including deals with Anadarko and Exxon Mobil Corp.

Anadarko's Mozambique assets would give Total a big boost in the gas business. The region is home to one of the world's largest natural-gas deposits, just ahead of Egypt's giant Zohr offshore field.

Anadarko has been developing a liquefied natural-gas project off Mozambique's coast, which was expected to start producing in 2024. Total said it would inherit 26.5% participating interest and operator status in the Mozambique project, which represents 2 billion barrels of oil equivalent of long-term natural-gas resources.

"This Mozambique asset will be producing for decades, that positions Total in LNG into the middle of the century," said Stuart Joyner, an energy specialist at the research firm Redburn Partners.

Total's deal occurs as the major oil companies are under increasing pressure from policy makers and activist investors to comply with the 2015 Paris climate accord and lower global carbon emissions from fossil fuels, which have been linked to rising global temperatures.

A group of more than 4,500 shareholders working under the auspices of the Netherlands-based group Follow This have been pushing Royal Dutch Shell, BP PLC, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Equinor ASA to set and publish emissions targets that are aligned with the goals of the climate agreement.

Total so far hasn't been presented with a shareholder resolution to lower its carbon footprint, but the company is trying to get ahead of the curve, analysts say.

"This is all part of [Total's] broader strategic aim to shift towards a low carbon energy future," said Valentina Kretzschmar, a director at Wood Mackenzie.

Write to Neanda Salvaterra at [e-mail]



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 11, 2019 08:14 ET (12:14 GMT)

[grupo] 12/5/2019 06:36

Oil Giant Total SA Goes Further in Liquefied Natural Gas With $8.8 Billion Deal in Africa
Buying Anadarko’s assets in Africa moves Total SA closer to natural-gas leader Royal Dutch Shell
By Neanda Salvaterra
May 11, 2019 8:00 a.m. ET

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Total SA’s deal to buy Anadarko Petroleum Corp.’s assets in Africa cements the French oil major’s position as the world’s second-largest provider of liquefied natural gas while pushing its business deeper into dangerous parts of the world.


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