Like a green elephant in the very chic porcelain finance store.
Climate issues are starting to worry even shareholders of major oil and gas groups.
This is what is happening at Total, where, under pressure from its financiers, the hydrocarbon giant will submit its climate plan to the vote of its shareholders.
“This is not at all anecdotal, investors hold immense power. Whether they do it for the public good or for immediate profitability, it doesn't matter, ”explains Lucie Pinson, general manager of the Reclaim Finance association. By using this spring, the climate activist managed to turn off the taps for the construction of mines and coal-fired power stations. This earned him the Goldman Prize, the equivalent of a Nobel for the environment.
The attacks have already started against the French oil tanker. Last year, eleven Total investors demanded a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. To maneuver, no environmental NGOs, nor small militant carriers who invite themselves to the general assembly with a symbolic action in hand. No, among the pro-climate rebels, we only find well-established fund managers like Crédit Mutuel or Asset Management.
At the time, Total management refused the resolution.
"Filing this text was already a challenge," rewinds Aurélie Baudhuin, wealth manager Meeschaert, who coordinated the movement.
It had taken eleven to constitute a David against this Goliath.
And then the depositors, who are only 0.5%, trembled until the last minute for fear that this pebble in the shoe would simply be swept away by management.
Total wants to become a champion of renewable energies
"An attempt at a climate resolution was deemed inadmissible at the AG in Vinci," recalls Aurélie Baudhuin. His motion received 16.8% of the vote, and 11% of abstention. Not terrible ? “A rather unexpected result, she assures on the contrary. One in four shareholders therefore directly or indirectly supported our text. "From there to conclude that its approach is at the origin of Total's green commitments ... It is a step that it would not allow itself to take.
For the French juggernaut, the new climate plan has been a revolution underway for a few years: "For Total, this transformation means stopping growth in oil production and falling sales of petroleum products," explains one at the major.
We deeply believe that a lot of oil will be left underground.
"The specialist in black gold assumes:" The market that will grow, it is not that of oil, but that of electricity.
Total therefore aims to be among the world's top 5 renewable energies from 2030. ”
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Not convincing for everyone. Meeschaert has let it be known that he will vote no, to keep putting the pressure on. “There are real actions, a real dynamic, greets Aurélie Baudhuin, but the plan is not complete. “His company, which manages the savings of business leaders, individuals or associations, only holds a small stake in Total, but symbolically it weighs heavily. In addition to coordinating the sling last year, Meeschaert represents to the oil company the Climate Action 100+ coalition, the initiative launched in 2017 to ensure that the largest companies tackle climate change.
Main grievance against Total's climate plan: the company does not sufficiently tackle its customers' emissions. “However, being more virtuous during extraction, transport or refining in the sector represents only 20% of the damage. It is when we burn oil in the tanks of our cars or in factories that it releases the most greenhouse gases, ”explains the specialist in the sector.
In fact, Total is committed to reducing its “internal” CO2 emissions by at least 30% by 2030, as well as those of its customers in Europe.
“The problem is that the company does not set a similar objective for the rest of the world, it is not very honest, judge Charles Fruitière, analyst at La Française, an asset management company, small shareholder of Total .
If global warming stopped at European borders, I would have nothing to say about it, but the problem is global.
“His company will also vote against the climate plan.
As for Crédit Mutuel, it announced on Wednesday that it will abstain.
"This abstention is a requirement for the rest of the process," insists the bank.
A climate resolution voted at Shell
Total is not an isolated case. Last week, nearly a third of Shell shareholders voted for the climate resolution, despite the group's negative opinion. Five years ago, the same resolution won only 2.7% of the vote. At the start of the year, the gigantic American fund BlackRock warned: it will no longer hesitate to vote for climate resolutions within the companies in its portfolio that have not aligned with the Paris agreements of 2015, this global framework aimed at limit climate change.
The Californian pension fund CalPERS and the British Legal & General, the second largest European asset manager, are supporting the green rebellion against Exxon Mobile. In October 2019, Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the largest in the world, shook the entire industry by announcing its exit from oil. A shattering announcement even if in detail, this giant with 1,000 billion euros in assets has only withdrawn its marbles from players specializing in exploration and production.
Where does this sudden ecological awareness of finance come from? Is it about saving the planet or protecting the wallets? “From now on, the two are linked, believes Aurélie Baudhuin. Many of our clients are individual investors. Until recently, they felt they had to choose between their beliefs and the performance of the investments. But while we are waiting for a major change in regulations, it is less true. "