Total is contributing to global management of greenhouses gases. We recognize the impact of our activities and actively support efforts to help the European Union meet its Kyoto Protocol targets. We have implemented near and long-term programs and participate in the development of innovative technologies, such as CO₂ capture and geological sequestration.

We also express our commitment to combating climate change by encouraging debate and supporting scientific expeditions. For example, Université Total organized a conference on climate change in June 2006 and we are backing Jean-Louis Etienne’s expedition to the North Pole to measure the thickness of the polar ice pack in spring 2008.

Commitment in line with European Union objectives


In 2005, in application of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Directive, National Allocation Plans allocated the initial CO₂ emissions trading allowances for the first trading period (2005-2007). These plans cover 39 of our industrial facilities, whose emissions are monitored, reported and verified, with coordination provided at business and corporate level.

A proactive approach to managing greenhouse gas emissions

We are pursuing our efforts to manage greenhouse gas emissions, a commitment we made even before the Kyoto Protocol was ratified by the European Union.  

Business	Our accomplishments at End-2006
Exploration & Production	39% reduction per unit produced compared with 1990
Refining	17% reduction per metric ton refined compared with 1990*
Chemicals	22% reduction in absolute value compared with 1990
Gas & Power	293 kilograms of CO2/MWh (equity share)

* Achieved despite additional processing of refined products to manufacture cleaner fuels.

An action plan focused on four main objectives

• Improving the reliability of our emissions data in terms of tabulation, reporting and external verification.
• Managing the greenhouse gas emissions generated by our sites and our customers.
• Enhancing the energy efficiency of products and processes through:
               o Energy efficiency programs in Petrochemicals and Refining.
               o Strong improvement drivers, such as stepping up Exploration & Production’s flaring⁽¹⁾ reduction initiatives (see press release).
• Securing the future of energy by investing in renewable energies, developing hydrogen fuel cell technology, conducting R&D programs on new equipment and industrial processes that produce fewer emissions, and exploring new technologies like CO₂ capture and geological sequestration.

Making a significant contribution to the development of CO₂ capture and geological sequestration, a technology of the future

CO₂ capture and geological sequestration is a promising addition to the array of solutions already being implemented to manage greenhouse gas emissions. According to experts from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this innovative technology could deliver 15 to 55% of the emissions reductions needed to stabilize the climate.

Launch of Lacq and other industrial demonstration projects

Following preliminary studies in 2006, Total announced the launch of the first integrated CO₂ capture and geological sequestration project in France on February 8, 2007.

In addition to the oxy-fuel combustion project in Lacq, Total is partnering several other industrial demonstration projects, including:

• A project operated by Statoil on the Sleipner offshore gas field in Norway. Each year, 1 million metric tons of CO₂ are injected into a saline aquifer, reducing the CO₂ content of the gas produced at the field from 9% to 2.5%.
• The Snøhvit project operated by Statoil in the Barents Sea, Norway, in which CO₂ will be separated at an onshore LNG plant and then piped offshore and injected into an aquifer below the gas field.

National and international R&D projects

• The European Union's CO₂ ReMoVe project, which aims to provide the resources necessary to design and monitor CO₂ sequestration sites.
• The Enhanced Capture of CO₂ (ENCAP) project, designed by and for the European power generation industry to contribute to the development of CO₂ capture technologies for different types of power plants.
• The French National Research Agency’s Géocarbone-PICOREF project, set up to identify underground sequestration sites in France.

Total is also actively exploring renewable energies and new energy vectors. To learn more, see The Future of Energy section.

⁽¹⁾Oil production produces associated gas that cannot be stored or shipped easily. When the gas cannot be used in the process or sold, it is burned. This is called flaring.