TotalFinaElf has decided to provide financial support to Toulouse residents affected by the Grande Paroisse explosion in response to the serious problems facing them as winter sets in. The Group will also open an energy coordination office with Electricité de France Midi-Pyrénées and the French Red Cross to assist people whose homes were damaged in the disaster.

TotalFinaElf and its insurers will cover the extra heating and lighting costs incurred by private homeowners, just as the Toulouse municipal authorities are doing for the public sector.

The energy coordination office will manage the administrative paperwork for the extra energy costs resulting from the disaster and facilitate payment.

TotalFinaElf will also contribute FRF 500,000 to the Energy Solidarity Fund, which handles the arrears incurred by families in extreme difficulty. The fund is managed by local institutions and Electricité de France.