TotalEnergies’ profits more than double while French households struggle to make ends meet, says 350.org

Just a day after MPs voted against taxing fossil fuel profits in the 2027 budget, TotalEnergies is today reporting obscene profits. Civil society stands united to denounce this handout to oil companies while a large share of French households are struggling to make ends meet. This morning, 350.org, Action Justice Climat Paris, Attac France and Extinction Rebellion – Carnage Total staged a visual action near the National Assembly to say loud and clear that yesterday’s vote does not settle the debate. Taxing fossil fuel profits remains an urgent priority.

Today, TotalEnergies reported a net income of $8.2 billion for the third quarter of 2026, up 124% year on year. Since January, the multinational has raked in $19.5 billion in profits, nearly twice as much as over the same period in 2025, without these windfall gains being subject to any additional tax whatsoever.

350.org has criticised TotalEnergies for using household affordability as leverage against taxation while pursuing a strategy of expanding oil and gas production and increasing shareholder payouts.

Against a backdrop of energy price volatility and escalating climate impacts, the figures raise urgent questions about who benefits from fossil fuel markets and who pays when prices rise. While households face higher costs and governments are left to fund public support, essential services and climate recovery, fossil fuel companies retain considerable control over production decisions and the distribution of their profits.

Joined by feminist organisations, students, trade unions and yellow vest activists, 350.org calls on political leaders to tax profits of fossil fuel companies without delay, in order to free up resources to fund public services, speed up the ecological transition and support households facing the rising cost of living. Yet every amendment to this effect was rejected by MPs yesterday in the vote on the 2027 budget for France.

Fanny Petitbon, France Manager, 350.org

“Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets across France this month because they can no longer afford to live. Their anger is rooted in our dependence on fossil fuels. Every time oil and gas prices spike, households pay more at the pump and on their bills. And every time, TotalEnergies cashes in.

“In a year of war, price shocks and social anger, TotalEnergies is making a fortune and doesn’t even pretend to be embarrassed about it. It claims to support households with affordability while threatening to withdraw fuel discounts if it is taxed, expanding fossil fuel production and promising shareholders ever-bigger payouts. When prices rise, ordinary people are told to tighten their belts and governments are expected to pick up the bill.

“Yet the government still refuses to tax TotalEnergies’ soaring profits, and yesterday MPs rejected every amendment that would have done so in the 2027 Finance Bill. That vote was a missed opportunity, not the end of the fight. Political leaders must make polluters pay, so that those profiting from the crisis help protect people and fund a fair transition to affordable, renewable energy.”

Rukiya Khamis, East Africa Programme Manager, 350.org

“TotalEnergies’ years of impunity while driving human rights and climate violations across Africa must end. To add insult to injury, Total continues to announce record profits while frontline communities face an escalating climate and social crisis. France must take a strong stance by taxing Total’s super profits, creating a precedent for every region where the company operates. Big polluters like Total must be held accountable and pay for the harm they inflict on people and the planet.”

Photos from the action are available here.

ENDS

Notes to editors

• This morning, TotalEnergies released its financial results for the third quarter of 2026.
• On 5 May, TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné warned that an additional tax on the company's refineries would mean it could not maintain the price cap at its French stations.
• On 28 September, TotalEnergies reaffirmed plans to grow oil and gas production by an average of 3% annually between 2025 and 2030, alongside dividend increases of more than 5% annually through 2030 and $2.5 billion in authorised fourth-quarter share buybacks.
• On 5 October, Pouyanné's comments about the commercial opportunities created by global disruption were reported by Reuters.
• 350.org is an international climate movement working to end the age of fossil fuels and build a just, equitable future powered by renewable energy.

Media contact:
Hala Bounaidja Rachedi, 350.org, [email protected], + 33 6 24 03 95 73