#AskPP – Episode 5
Fuel prices rise, photovoltaic solution for B2B customers, our strategy to face the energy demand on a global scale: Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of TotalEnergies, gives straight answers to the questions from the French people.
Camille: It’s true, so many questions to ask. Are we going to see the price of gasoline go up in 2024? Will the price of gasoline go up?
Patrick Pouyanné: I wish I knew, TotalEnergies doesn’t set oil prices. The oil-producing countries, and notably the OPEC members, are the ones who determine prices, influenced, of course, by supply and demand. The price of oil has fluctuated enormously this year, rising from around $70 per barrel to almost $100. That’s an increase of almost 50% in just twelve months. The variations can be huge. Gasoline prices are a different matter.
The price you pay at the pump isn’t determined solely by the price of oil, but also by taxes set by the government. So, will gasoline prices rise? I sincerely hope not. None of us want that. Whatever happens, with TotalEnergies, I can guarantee you won’t pay any more than €1.99.
Arnaud: I run a business, and our roof measures around 800m2. What can you do to help us install solar panels there?
Patrick Pouyanné: Arnaud, you’re a potential customer for us, if you’re willing to give us access to your building and the roof of your building, we will gladly help you find a suitable solar panel solution. It could power some of your energy needs, and we could use some of the energy too, by buying back any of the excess power. Give us your address, and we’ll send one of our TotalEnergies Solar Distributed Generation sales representatives to help.
Fabian: How can you justify your failure to act for the common good and your continued lack of concern for the planet?
Patrick Pouyanné: Fabian, the question you’re asking is one that I know many young people watching today will be asking. The truth of the matter is that we currently have a fossil-based society.
Look at how we all live our lives today, how we get around, heat our houses, get to work and so on. 80% of the energy needed for that is provided by fossil fuels. Very few people are aware of that. As well as having pledged to supply people with the energy they need today, that’s our current mission, we are also investing in the energy of tomorrow by making a strong commitment to focus on renewable energy, and electricity.
If we were to stop investing infossil-based energy today, that would simply push prices up. Why? Because the global population is growing. There are more people on the planet than ever before, all striving for a better quality of life. To have a good quality of life, people living in developing countries want access to energy now.
And that energy comes from fossil fuels. The fossil-based energy we produce is more for developing countries than for developed ones. Developed countries have the means – and must do all we can – to accelerate the energy transition in developed countries.
That’s precisely why we are investing in electric mobility here in Europe, because in Europe, we should be able to swap our gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles for electric ones more quickly, helping fast-track our efforts against climate change.