With differences over Climate policies, Oil Giant TOTAL withdraws from API.

On15th Jan, 2021, French Oil and Gas Giant, Total, said, “Total will not renew its membership with American Petroleum Institute (API) for 2021 due to difference with the mail U.S Oil lobby over climate policies.”

The last 2 years, 2019 and 2020, Total found API’s positions “partially aligned” with their own but there were still some differences. One of the major differences between Total and API was, API’s membership in TFA (Transportation Fairness Alliance), which opposes the electric vehicles subsidising. Another major difference between Total and API’s interests was API’s support for the restoring of U.S regulation on methane emission. Total previously opposed this in November, 2019. Total and API also have their differences over carbon pricing.

In a statement released on Friday, Total said, “Moreover, API gave its support during the recent elections to candidates who argued against the United States’ participation in the Paris Agreement.”

On Friday, Total’s chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné said, “As part of our Climate Ambition made public in May 2020, we are committed to ensuring, in a transparent manner, that the industry associations of which we are a member adopt positions and messages that are aligned with those of the Group in the fight against climate change.”

Total is hoping to increase their LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) and renewable business with a profitable margin as part of their new plans and net-zero agenda.

In September 2020, Patrick Pouyanné, Total’s chairman and CEO told French news-paper Le Parisien, “Total aims to be in the world’s top 5 producers of renewable energy.” Pouyanné further added, “By 2050, Total’s business will be segmented into 20% Oil, 40% Gas, and 40% renewable energy.” Currently, Total’s operations are divided into 55% Oil, 40% Gas, and less than 5% electricity from renewable energy sources.

Total is not the only European Oil and Gas supergiant to quit America major oil lobbies over difference of opinions regarding climate policies.

Last year, British Petroleum (BP) quit the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM), the Western Energy Alliance (WEA), and the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), three U.S. energy trade associations, the main refining lobby group. In an in-depth review BP found out that those 3 associations do not have climate policies aligned with the BP’s goals and with BP’s support of the Parish Agreement.

A year before that, Royal Dutch Shell, famously known as Shell, quit refining group American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM). Shell quit AFPM because of material misalignment in Climate Policies. Shell became the first major Oil and Gas company to quit the refining lobby over climate policy disagreements.