{"id":40494,"date":"2026-09-28T10:17:28","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T08:17:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reclaimfinance.org\/site\/?p=40494"},"modified":"2026-09-28T14:59:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:59:12","slug":"why-is-totalenergies-losing-support-among-investors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reclaimfinance.org\/site\/en\/2026\/09\/28\/why-is-totalenergies-losing-support-among-investors\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is TotalEnergies losing support among investors?"},"content":{"rendered":"

TotalEnergies is facing growing scrutiny from investors who criticize its climate-wrecking strategy \u2014 including dropping its 2050 net-zero goal \u2014 with some going as far as to rule out investing in the company. The latest to do so is Caisse des D\u00e9p\u00f4ts, TotalEnergies’ tenth-largest investor, which has just committed to no longer buy bonds issued by oil-producers.[1] Nearly 70 international investors now exclude financing for TotalEnergies and other companies developing new oil and gas fields. Reclaim Finance reviews the reasons that led them to write off TotalEnergies and its peers, and calls on all investors to stop financing fossil fuel companies.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>

In recent years, TotalEnergies has continued to increase its oil and gas production, as well as the share of its investments dedicated to new oil and gas projects. In 2023, the company announced a target of allocating 30% of its investments to these projects by 2030. It has since then raised this goal in stages to 35% [2] and even plans to dedicate 40% of its 2026 investments to new fossil fuel projects.[3]<\/span><\/p>\n

In parallel, the company scaled back its 2030 investment targets for \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>integrated power and low-carbon molecules<\/span><\/i> \u00a0\u00bb \u2013 which includes renewable electricity but also fossil gas-fired power plants \u2013 from 33% in 2023 to 26% in 2026.[4] Between 2025 and 2026, the company also reduced its 2030 gross renewable capacity target from 100 GW [5] to \u201cmore than 75 GW\u201d.[6]<\/span><\/p>\n

It is therefore hardly surprising that TotalEnergies was found liable for greenwashing by the Paris Judicial Court in October 2025 after claiming it was a \u00ab\u00a0major player in the energy transition.\u00a0\u00bb[7] This followed similar decisions by advertising regulatory bodies against the company in Germany,[8] South Africa [9] and the United Kingdom.[10] In March 2026 the company acknowledged that it was not \u00a0\u00bb <\/span>in a position to formulate a net zero target within the meaning of European regulations <\/span><\/i>\u00ab\u00a0.[11]<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

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A strategy rejected by several European investors<\/h2><\/span>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/i><\/i><\/span>Asset Owner<\/span><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
\n
\n

Which investors refuse to support TotalEnergies?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Countries<\/b><\/th>\nExclusion from the investment portfolio <\/b>of all or a majority of companies developing oil and gas fields, including TotalEnergies<\/span><\/th>\nStop new investments (stocks and bonds) <\/b>in companies developing oil and gas fields, including TotalEnergies<\/span><\/th>\nNo bonds investments <\/b>In companies developing oil and gas fields, including TotalEnergies<\/span><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Australia<\/strong><\/td>\nAustralian Ethical, Pengana International Equities<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Canada<\/strong><\/td>\nLa Caisse<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Denmark<\/strong><\/td>\nAkademikerPension, AP Pension, Laegernes Pensionskasse, L\u00e6rernes Pension, P+ Pension Fund for Academics, PenSam, PKA<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
France<\/strong><\/td>\nIrcantec<\/td>\nAEMA \u2013 MACIF, Assurances du Cr\u00e9dit Mutuel, AG2R La Mondiale [18], BPCE Assurances, CCR [19], CNP Assurances, Cr\u00e9dit Mutuel Ark\u00e9a – Suravenir, Groupama, MAIF, Matmut, SCOR, Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 G\u00e9n\u00e9rale Assurances, Tut\u00e9laire.[20]<\/span><\/td>\nAEMA – Abeille Assurances [22], BNP Paribas Cardif, Caisse des D\u00e9p\u00f4ts [1], MACSF<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ireland<\/strong><\/td>\nIreland Strategic Investment Fund<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Netherlands<\/strong><\/td>\na.s.r. [12], ABP, Menzis, Pensioenfonds Slagers, PFZW, PH&C, PME, PMT [13], Rail & OV, SPH, VGZ<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sweden<\/strong><\/td>\nAP7; [16]<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Switzerland<\/strong><\/td>\nEthos, PKBS, Stiftung Abendrot<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
United Kingdom<\/strong><\/td>\nChurch Commissioners for England, Church of England Pension Board, CCLA IM [14], Lambeth Pension Fund, London Pension Fund Authority [15], Waltham Forest Pension Fund, Wiltshire Pension Fund<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
United States<\/strong><\/td>\nBaltimore Retirement Systems (BCERS, BCFPERS, BEORS), Lemonade Insurance, New York City Retirement Systems (NYCERS, NYCTRS, NYCBERS);<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/i><\/i><\/span>Asset Manager<\/span><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
\n
\n

Which investors refuse to support TotalEnergies?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Countries<\/b><\/th>\nExclusion from the investment portfolio <\/b>of all or a majority of companies developing oil and gas fields, including TotalEnergies<\/span><\/th>\nStop new investments (stocks and bonds) <\/b>in companies developing oil and gas fields, including TotalEnergies<\/span><\/th>\nNo bonds investments <\/b>In companies developing oil and gas fields, including TotalEnergies<\/span><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Finland<\/strong><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\nNordea Asset Management<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
France<\/strong><\/td>\n–<\/td>\nAG2R La Mondiale Gestion d’actifs [18], Anaxis AM, Ecofi |21], Mandarine Gestion, Mirova, SCOR IP<\/span><\/td>\nAEMA – OFI Invest AM, BNP Paribas AM<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Netherlands<\/strong><\/td>\na.s.r. AM [12], Achmea Investment Management |17], Cardano, MN<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sweden<\/strong><\/td>\nSEB Investment Management<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
United Kingdom<\/strong><\/td>\nGeneration Investment Management, Sarasin & Partners<\/span><\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Sources : Oil and Gas Policy Tracker<\/span><\/a><\/span>,<\/span> Global Fossil Fuel Divestment Commitments Database<\/span><\/a><\/span>,<\/span> Financial Exclusion Tracker<\/span><\/a>,<\/span> Net Zero Finance Report Card<\/span><\/a><\/span>, September 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

Many shareholders in TotalEnergies had bet that engagement with the company would improve its climate strategy. But the successive weakenings of the oil major\u2019s climate targets have led numerous European investors to acknowledge that dialogue is not working. They have therefore decided to increase pressure on TotalEnergies by ruling out any new investment in the company.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2022, pension fund Ircantec was one of the first French investors to announce that it was divesting from TotalEnergies and 11 other fossil fuel companies \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>due to the climate emergency (…) and in line with the recent projections of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA)<\/span><\/i>\u00ab\u00a0.[23] This exclusion was subsequently extended in 2024 to \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>all companies initiating new oil and gas exploration, production or transport projects<\/span><\/i>\u00ab\u00a0.[24]<\/span><\/p>\n

Dutch asset manager MN, which had coordinated the dialogue between TotalEnergies and the Climate Action 100+ initiative (comprising over 600 international investors), justified its 2024 decision to exclude the company from its portfolio by \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>years of intensive, yet unsuccessful, climate engagement<\/span><\/i>\u00ab\u00a0.[25]<\/span><\/p>\n

More recently, Nordea Asset Management, which had \u201cquarantined\u201d TotalEnergies due to allegations of human rights violations surrounding the EACOP project in Uganda,[26] announced in February 2026 that it would stop buying bonds from oil and gas companies such as TotalEnergies.[27] In June 2026, the Swiss foundation Ethos announced that it would stop investing in companies developing new oil and gas fields and singled out TotalEnergies among companies that were \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>neither open to dialogue nor inclined to change<\/span><\/i>\u00a0\u00bb and that had \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>attempted to obstruct the efforts of their own shareholders seeking to encourage them towards change<\/span><\/i>\u00ab\u00a0.[28]<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

<\/div><\/div><\/span>

An exclusion to be generalized to all fossil fuel companies<\/b><\/h2><\/span>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>

Without directly naming TotalEnergies, several French investors, such as asset management giant BNP Paribas AM [29] and, more recently, French state-owned group Caisse des D\u00e9p\u00f4ts (TotalEnergies’ tenth-largest investor),[30] have also decided in recent years to stop buying bonds issued by any company involved in oil and gas exploration and production. This is particularly significant since bonds represent a critical source of financing for fossil fuel companies, which has doubled over the last decade.[31]<\/span><\/p>\n

Other investors, particularly in the insurance sector,[32] also exclude the purchase of shares in companies that are developing oil and gas projects. Some [33] such as Maif or Suravenir (Cr\u00e9dit Mutuel Ark\u00e9a) extend this exclusion to the rest of the value chain, including liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals and new gas-fired power plants. By excluding any new investment in these companies, while keeping the shares they already own, they retain their shareholder power and can thus sanction the climate-wrecking strategies of these companies. Indeed, they must actively obstruct the general meetings of companies such as TotalEnergies, by voting against the re-election of board members and the remuneration of their executives or against the approval of financial accounts.[34]<\/span><\/p>\n

Against a backdrop of multiplying extreme weather events and the energy price crisis, investors who claim to be responsible must immediately commit to ending all new investments \u2014 primarily bonds \u2014 in fossil fuel companies. Reclaim Finance also calls on all TotalEnergies\u2019 investors to vote against the re-election of their board members, the remuneration of their executives, and the approval of their financial accounts at the company\u2019s next annual meeting.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/div><\/div><\/span>

Notes :<\/h3><\/span>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
    \n
  1. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> Caisse des D\u00e9p\u00f4ts partially cuts funding for fossil fuel expansion<\/span><\/a><\/span>, September 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> Assessment of TotalEnergies’ climate strategy<\/span><\/a><\/span>, May 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. TotalEnergies,<\/span> 2025 Results and 2026 Objectives<\/span><\/a><\/span>, February 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> Assessment of TotalEnergies’ climate strategy<\/span><\/a><\/span>, May 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. TotalEnergies,<\/span> 2024 Universal Registration Document<\/span><\/a><\/span>, March 2025, p.184-185: \u00a0\u00bb <\/span>In 2024, It has reached a gross installed production capacity of 26 GW of renewable electricity and intends to continue developing these activities to reach 35 GW in 2025 and<\/span><\/i> 100 GW in 2030<\/i><\/b>.\u00a0\u00bb<\/span><\/i><\/li>\n
  6. \u00ab\u00a0<\/span>TotalEnergies<\/span><\/i> (…)<\/span>installed 8 GW of gross renewable capacity in last twelve months, reaching 35 GW of gross capacity at end-March 2026, and aims to maintain this annual pace through to 2030 <\/span><\/i>to reach more than 75 GW<\/i><\/b>.\u00a0\u00bb <\/span><\/i>TotalEnergies,<\/span> Renewables: TotalEnergies Divests its Distributed Solar Generation Activities in Europe<\/span><\/a><\/span>, July 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. Friends of the Earth France,<\/span> Total condemned for greenwashing: a major legal precedent against climate misinformation by oil majors<\/span><\/a><\/span>, October 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. \u00a0Sabin Center for Climate Change Law database,<\/span> Deutsche Umwelthilfe v. TotalEnergies W\u00e4rme & Kraftstoff Deutschland GmbH<\/span><\/a><\/span>, January 2023<\/span><\/li>\n
  9. South Africa Advertising Regulatory Board,<\/span> Decision of the Advertising Regulatory Board \u2013 TotalEnergies Marketing South Africa (Pty) Ltd<\/span><\/a><\/span>, August 2024<\/span><\/li>\n
  10. United Kingdom Advertising Standards Authority Ltd,<\/span> ASA ruling on TotalEnergies SE<\/span><\/a>, April 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  11. TotalEnergies,<\/span> 2025 Universal Registration Document<\/span><\/a><\/span>, March 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  12. a.s.r,<\/span> Overview excluded companies by controversial activities and behaviour H1 2026<\/span><\/a><\/span>, April 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  13. Responsible Investor,<\/span> Climate action 100% co-leads for Total step down<\/span><\/a><\/span>, May 2024<\/span><\/li>\n
  14. Net Zero Investor,<\/span> AP7 excludes BP, Woodside, Chevron and TotalEnergies over Paris alignment concerns<\/span><\/a><\/span>, December 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  15. \u00a0<\/span>Church Times,<\/span> Church fossil-fuel holdings are sold to the sound of no trumpets<\/span><\/a><\/span>, July 2020<\/span><\/li>\n
  16. London Pension Fund Authority,<\/span> Last extractive fossil fuel company removed from LPFA’s equity portfolio<\/span><\/a><\/span>, February 2022<\/span><\/li>\n
  17. Achmea,<\/span> Countries and companies excluded from investment effective as of Q1 2026<\/span><\/a><\/span>, janvier 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  18. From 2027. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> \u00a0AG2R LA MONDIALE takes a step forward in the fight against oil and gas expansion<\/span><\/span><\/a>, June 2023<\/span><\/li>\n
  19. CCR,<\/span> Rapport Investissement Responsable<\/span><\/a><\/span>, June 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  20. Tut\u00e9laire,<\/span> Politique d\u2019exclusion des \u00e9nergies fossiles<\/span><\/a><\/span>, June 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  21. Ecofi,<\/span> Rapport sur l\u2019Article 29 de la loi \u00e9nergie climat<\/span><\/a><\/span>, December 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  22. Abeille Assurances,<\/span> Investissement Responsable, Rapport 2026<\/span><\/a><\/span>, June 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  23. Ircantec,<\/span> En coh\u00e9rence avec ses engagements pris dans le cadre de sa nouvelle politique Climat, l\u2019Ircantec a exclu 12 soci\u00e9t\u00e9s au sein de son portefeuille d\u2019investissement<\/span><\/a><\/span>, April 2022<\/span><\/li>\n
  24. Ircantec,<\/span> Charte ISR Principes retenus par l\u2019Ircantec<\/span><\/a><\/span>, January 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  25. Responsible Investor,<\/span> Climate action 100% co-leads for Total step down<\/span><\/a><\/span>, mai 2024<\/span><\/li>\n
  26. Net Zero Investor,<\/span> Nordea confirms quarantine for fossil fuel major<\/span><\/a><\/span>, avril 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  27. Nordea Asset Management,<\/span> Nordea updates sector target and clarifies position on oil and gas extraction<\/span><\/a><\/span>, f\u00e9vrier 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  28. Ethos,<\/span> \u00a0Fossil fuels: Ethos clarifies its exclusion criteria<\/span><\/span><\/a>, June 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  29. BNP Paribas AM’s exclusion is limited to bonds issued on the primary market. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> The impact of BNP Paribas AM\u2019s revised investment policy<\/span><\/a><\/span>, January 2025<\/span><\/li>\n
  30. Caisse des D\u00e9p\u00f4ts Group,<\/span> Lignes sectorielles pour le financement du secteur de l\u2019\u00e9nergie, Politique climat du groupe Caisse des D\u00e9p\u00f4ts<\/span><\/a><\/span>, September 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  31. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> Monitoring Bond Transactions – Analysing banks involved in the most controversial deals<\/span><\/a><\/span>, 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  32. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> Life Insurance Investments in TotalEnergies: An Increasingly Indefensible Choice<\/span><\/a><\/span>, April 2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  33. Macif, Macsf, Maif, Suravenir (Cr\u00e9dit Mutuel Ark\u00e9a)<\/span><\/li>\n
  34. Reclaim Finance,<\/span> Between lax engagement and complete divestment, is there a third way?<\/span><\/a><\/span>, February 2024<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    Read also<\/h2><\/div>
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