TotalEnergies CEO doubles down on US LNG, downplays Trump tariff fears

By America Hernandez

LONDON (Reuters) - TotalEnergies will expand its investment in U.S. liquefied natural gas over the next decade as the French company seeks to cement its position as a major exporter of U.S. LNG, its CEO told Reuters on Wednesday, dismissing fears by American market watchers that more exports could boost U.S. gas prices.

In an interview with Reuters, TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said he believed President Donald Trump’s administration will implement pragmatic policies that will support U.S. energy production even as the world faces a new era of tariffs and trade wars.

“What they want is very simple: jobs and billions of dollars in the U.S,” he said.

Since becoming CEO in 2014, Pouyanne has shifted Total’s focus away from Russia to low-cost oil and gas production in the Middle East, Brazil, and the U.S., while also growing electricity and renewables.

Total reported on Wednesday that it made $18.3 billion last year, as a strong LNG trading division offset weak oil refining profits.

While rivals including Chevron, Exxon Mobil and BP invested heavily over the past decade in shale oil and gas production, the French firm has largely opted to invest in LNG projects that have given it access to more than 10 million metric tons of U.S. LNG annually to supply global customers.

“We have enough to grow the U.S. position for the next decade, and I’m sure we’ll do it,” he said.

Pouyanne, 61, said TotalEnergies could invest in expansion projects at its Cameron and Rio Grande LNG facilities on the Gulf of Mexico.

“We can extend Cameron LNG," he said, adding a fourth train, or production facility. "We can extend Rio Grande," he said, to include a fifth, sixth or seventh train.

The U.S. is expected to nearly double its LNG export capacity by the end of the decade. Some economists have warned this could constrain domestic supplies and lead to higher energy bills for Americans, which could then prompt Trump to reconsider his stance on LNG exports.

Pouyanne said that the U.S. has abundant gas supplies due to its vast shale reserves, but that the country needed to invest in pipeline infrastructure to deliver the gas to demand centers along the coasts.

“If you look at the history of the evolution of the U.S. gas price, the spikes are more linked to the lack of infrastructure than the lack of resources,” he said.

EUROPEAN SUPPLY WORRIES

Europe has become the main buyer of U.S. LNG since losing access to Russian supplies following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

While Total has become a major supplier of that American LNG, the company has also continued to supply Russian LNG to Europe from that country's Yamal LNG export facility.

Pouyanne said Total’s ability to source the superchilled gas from all geographies will help it minimize the risk to profits from tit-for-tat tariffs like those between China and the U.S.

“Fundamentally it’s a political game, because China’s purchase of U.S. energy is quite limited – in fact, they purchase from portfolio companies like us. What we will do is take more LNG from Qatar or from Australia, and the US LNG we will send to other customers,” the CEO said.

Even so, Pouyanne cautioned Europe away from banning Russian LNG before 2027, saying the market would not be able to reroute 18 million tons of Russian supply until new projects start up worldwide.

He instead urged the European Union to negotiate with Trump for guaranteed LNG, sign more long-term contracts and to reconsider its carbon taxes, which have driven up the cost of electricity.

(Reporting by America Hernandez in London; Editing by David Gregorio)