TotalEnergies (TTE) secured a significant judicial victory on Thursday after a Paris court rejected attempts by activists and the City of Paris to force the company to halt new oil and gas developments or slash production volumes.
The Paris Judicial Court ruled that France's duty of vigilance law does not hold companies liable for climate risks arising from "all human activity on the planet since the industrial revolution."
The court also said it was not within its remit to set emissions reduction targets for the energy firm, stating that "it is not for the court to set TotalEnergies the target to be reached to prevent or mitigate the negative climate impacts resulting from its activity".
The ruling marks a setback for environmental campaigners who had sought to use France's 2017 duty of vigilance legislation to compel the oil major to align its business strategy more closely with climate goals.
TotalEnergies said it has reduced emissions from its operated assets, known as Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, by 28% since 2015, including a 65% reduction in methane emissions since 2020.
However, the Paris Judicial Court asked TotalEnergies to update its vigilance plan to include Scope 3 emissions, and the company said it will revise the plan, drawing on its sustainability report, while assessing its next steps.
TotalEnergies said it is pursuing investments in electricity and biofuels to help customers lower their carbon footprints and is targeting a 25% reduction in the carbon intensity of energy products sold by 2030, compared with 2015 levels.
The French energy major said it had achieved an 18% reduction by the end of 2025.
The company argued that reductions in customer emissions also depend on consumer and investment decisions, including the adoption of electric vehicles, heat pumps and low-carbon fuels such as E90 ethanol blends.
Price: $78.08, Change: $-0.20, Percent Change: -0.26%