TotalEnergies’ Sustainable Claims Questioned Amid Environmental Backlash at COP29

A week before the COP29 climate talks began in Azerbaijan, TotalEnergies unveiled a new public electric vehicle charging station in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, announcing plans to expand the network nationwide. The French oil giant framed this move as part of a larger effort to promote electric mobility and meet the rising demand for cleaner, more sustainable energy.

Shortly after, during the climate negotiations in Baku, TotalEnergies, in collaboration with the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), took approximately 40 local journalists on a three-day tour of its operations in Uganda’s Albertine region. The journalists were shown oil fields and environmental initiatives led by the multinational.

For many climate experts and activists, however, TotalEnergies’ actions seem like an attempt at “greenwashing,” timed to coincide with the global climate talks. Despite the company’s sustainability rhetoric, it remains the primary shareholder in the contentious East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP). Environmental studies warn that the pipeline, stretching 1,443 km from Uganda to Tanzania’s coast, could cause significant ecological damage, displace over 100,000 people, and contribute an estimated 34 million metric tonnes of additional carbon emissions.

“TotalEnergies is a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” says Ugandan activist Bob Barigye. “This carbon bomb has forced tens of thousands from their homes and continues to bring suffering to our communities.”

Andrew Kudakwashe, Just Transition Associate at Power Shift Africa, criticizes the company’s contradictory approach. “You can’t embrace clean energy while still heavily invested in fossil fuels,” he argues. “TotalEnergies is clearly practicing double standards.”

TotalEnergies has faced mounting allegations of greenwashing, especially after its rebranding in 2021, which featured a new rainbow-colored logo. In recent years, the company’s claims about its environmental efforts have led to legal challenges. In 2022, environmental organizations filed a lawsuit in Paris, accusing the company of misleading the public by advertising itself as a leader in the energy transition while continuing to promote fossil fuels. In 2023, a French court allowed the case to proceed.

The company also faced a ruling from South Africa’s Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) in 2023, which found that TotalEnergies had misrepresented its commitment to sustainability. The ARB determined that the company’s core business, involving the extraction and use of fossil fuels, was fundamentally at odds with sustainable development goals. TotalEnergies is appealing this decision.

In an attempt to shift its narrative, TotalEnergies recently announced plans to acquire a 28.3% stake in Uganda’s Bujagali Hydropower Dam, a renewable energy project. Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné framed the acquisition as a move to support Africa’s energy transition.

TotalEnergies’ operations in Uganda are strongly supported by President Yoweri Museveni, who has called Uganda’s oil reserves “his oil.” The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) has consistently dismissed calls for an independent environmental review of TotalEnergies’ projects. Meanwhile, the government has been accused of silencing climate activists through arrests and crackdowns. TotalEnergies has also partnered with the Ugandan government on environmental projects like the Running Out of Trees (ROOTS) initiative, which promotes tree planting.

At COP29, NEMA’s Executive Director, Barirega Akankwasah, defended the environmental assessments for the EACOP project, arguing that Uganda’s low current carbon emissions will improve in the long term as the country gradually shifts to renewable energy. He claimed that by 2060, Uganda’s carbon emissions would decrease after benefiting from fossil fuel revenues.

Critics, such as Fadhel Kaboub, President of the Global Institute for Sustainable Prosperity, warn that the country is heading into a “debt trap” due to its reliance on fossil fuels. “Uganda is borrowing heavily to support these oil projects,” Kaboub says, noting that TotalEnergies controls most of the profits from the venture, while Uganda owns only a small portion of the pipeline.

The role of fossil fuels in global climate negotiations remains contentious. COP29, like the previous conference in the UAE, is hosted by a nation whose economy is deeply tied to oil and gas exports. While previous climate talks have recognized the need to transition away from fossil fuels, progress has been slow, with some negotiators struggling to maintain momentum.

African climate activists continue to push for more decisive action, although some officials, like Turyahabwe Byempaka of the East African Community, label their calls as “Western propaganda” and accuse them of hindering development. In contrast, Shepherd Zvigadza, coordinator of Climate Action in South Africa, argues that the real propaganda comes from corporations like TotalEnergies, which are profiting from fossil fuel exploitation while undermining the global push for climate action.

Locally, a TotalEnergies employee, who wished to remain anonymous, hinted that the company plans to increase its engagement with the Ugandan media, including organizing a “joint media engagement party” later in the year.