By Pratap John
Chief Business Reporter
Global energy major Total, which has a “strategic relationship” with Qatar, looks for more opportunities in the country, from upstream to downstream including marketing and solar energy, said Global CEO Patrick Pouyanné.
“The Middle East as a whole is extremely significant for Total, and Qatar is a very important part of those Middle East operations. We have been in this country for nearly 80 years and today have a wide range of activities here,” Pouyanné told Gulf Times in an interview.
Total’s interests in Qatar Upstream include Qatargas 1 and Qatargas 2 as well as in Dolphin Energy. But in a country where the energy industry is somewhat dominated by gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG), Total also has a key asset in oil: the Al Khalij field.
Discovered by Total in 1991, it began production in 1997. In 2013, Total signed a new 25-year concession agreement; the company now has a 40% operating interest with Qatar Petroleum (QP) holding the remaining 60%.
Qatar also, Pouyanné said, constitutes one of Total’s largest integrated platforms for refining and petrochemicals activities, split between Messaied and Ras Laffan.
Qapco was established in 1974 in Mesaieed and since has been expanded several times. Since 2011, Ras Laffan Olefin Company (RLOC) has been producing ethylene in Ras Laffan that is transported through a pipeline to Mesaieed and partly used by Qatofin, a JV between Qapco and Total.
Laffan Refinery 1, located in Ras Laffan, is a condensates refinery with a capacity of 146kb/d. An expansion to double this capacity (Laffan Refinery 2) is underway for a start-up in the second half of 2016, Total’s global CEO said.
“Our interests in Dolphin Energy, Qatargas 1 and Qatargas 2, Al Khalij, Qapco, RLOC and Laffan Refinery underline our commitment to the country. These are long-term licences and agreements that will last for many years to come, and we would also consider taking on new business or entering into additional agreements if we think we can add value,” Pouyanné said.
“We have a strategic partnership with Qatar. Not only we intend to maintain it, but also we are always looking for new opportunities from upstream to downstream including marketing and solar energy.
“Qatar is a very special country for me as I have held the position of managing director of our upstream affiliate here and group representative from 1999 to 2002. My visit here has, of course, a special meaning,” said Pouyanné during his first visit to Doha after assuming charge as Total’s Global CEO.
‘I’m just succeeding de Margerie’
“I don’t replace Christophe de Margerie. I’m just succeeding him. I’ll be as I am,” said Patrick Pouyanné, who was appointed Total’s global chief following the death of de Margerie in a plane crash in Russia in October. “I have been chosen to do the job so I have to continue to be as I am. I know I have 100,000 persons around the world who are waiting for some guidance from me. But my main message today is that we are a strong company, very united, we have a good strategy and let’s move on after these sad days,” Pouyanné said when asked whether his appointment meant a “decisive shift” in company’s focus and policies.
Pouyanné said, “What is important above all is that Total has demonstrated mutual support and strength at the time of this tragic accident. The board was able to take a decision in a day and a half and to unanimously ask me to take the job of CEO. But I am not alone: I have a strong team with me, at the executive committee level.”
