Our Ethics
We apply and comply with all national and international laws and standards in all countries that host our operations. We have made our values the beacons that guide our actions, day after day.
TotalEnergies operates in a large number of countries with diverse and complex economic and socio-cultural environments. This situation can expose us to risks related to safety, health, the environment and ethics. For this reason, states and societies have particularly high expectations of our Company.
Our business principles
The values, reference standards and collective and individual principles are defined in the TotalEnergies Code of Conduct, which serves as a reference document. It is primarily intended for employees and managers, who are required to comply with it in all their daily activities. Development is intrinsically rooted in the trust and respect that exists between the Company and its employees and between the employees themselves. The Code of Conduct also defines commitments and expectations towards stakeholders, including shareholders, customers and suppliers, so that continued growth benefits all, while helping to drive economic and social development in all countries hosts.
Our ethics committee
Since 2001, the Ethics Committee has been responsible for monitoring the application of our Code of Conduct and for supporting and advising TotalEnergies collaborators and interested parties. The Committee is available to answer any questions or requests for advice regarding the application or compliance with the Code of Conduct. Employees and interested parties can report any matter that poses serious ethical risks in areas such as corruption, fraud, anti-competitive practices, discrimination, harassment, workplace health, hygiene and safety and environmental protection.
Collective security and surveillance
Security is the cornerstone of our operational efficiency, as we operate in an industry that can never be completely risk-free. Security is also the foundation of our collective commitment, a daily battle that we fight with humility and vigilance, to operate sustainably and establish relationships based on trust with our host countries. To achieve the goal of zero fatalities, we must improve our risk management, both at workstations and in our operations. When choosing our commercial and industrial partners we pay particular attention to their ability to apply a security policy equivalent to ours.
Rigorous integrity standard
To ensure exemplary behavior as a Company in all our host countries, we must be able to count on the integrity of each of our stakeholders. This is why we have developed rigorous compliance programs based on zero tolerance for fraud, corruption and non-compliance with competition law. These programs make use of risk analysis, dedicated policies and procedures, training and awareness programs on rules and best practices to assist in risk prevention, detection, analysis and feedback.
Respect for human rights
As a Company we remain committed to our stakeholders to respect human rights wherever we operate. This includes rights at work, through compliance with the core conventions of the International Labor Organization (ILO); the rights of local communities in the countries involved in our activities; ensure that the measures taken for the safety of our employees and our facilities do not impede the fundamental freedoms of members of local communities. In July 2016, we were the first oil and gas company to publish a human rights briefing. Based on the United Nations Guiding Principles Reporting Framework, it shows our current approach to embedding respect for human rights into our operations.
Protection of the environment
We are committed to protecting the environment by monitoring the impact of our operations in all of our host countries. We promote efficient and responsible use of our energy sources and products. At the same time, we strive to protect people's health, be it our employees, our customers or local communities, by implementing awareness and prevention actions on various types of health risks.
Financial transparency
We are committed to ensuring rigorous transparency regarding the disclosure of revenues generated by our activities. We have supported the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) since its inception in 2002 with the goal of reporting Company payments to host country governments. We are particularly committed to this voluntary, multi-stakeholder initiative, as it offers a framework for dialogue for all parties involved, including governments, oil, gas and mining companies and civil society. In addition to our commitment to the EITI, we report payments made by the Company's mining companies to the benefit of each state or territory government in which TotalEnergies conducts its operations.
Human Rights
Actions to respect human rights
Respect for each other is a core value, at the heart of our collective ethic and Code of Conduct. Respect for each other means respect for human rights, which are non-negotiable in our operations around the world.
Respect for human rights in the workplace
We take action against all forms of discrimination, forced labor and child labor; ensure good quality working conditions and decent wages, and require the same of our suppliers.. We are also engaged in conducting external audits of our affiliates using the consulting firm Good Corporation. In 2022, we joined the International Labour Organization’s Child Labour Platform, a multi-sector initiative to combat child labor.
Respect for human rights of local communities
In our project development process, we conduct specific Due Diligence as soon as studies begin to identify the potential negative impacts of our activities on local communities, as well as appropriate remediation plans, in accordance with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
We comply with our Charter Regarding Indigenous and Tribal Peoples issued in 2012. We maintain regular dialogue with our stakeholders, including human rights defenders NGOs who help us identify actions in the field, and we make sure to involve them in the pre-project stages.
Respect for human rights in security activities
When security contractors or government forces in charge of protecting our employees and installations have to intervene, we make sure they have been vetted individually and received adequate training. We also perform analyses each year to assess the security risks at our sites.
Business Ethics
TotalEnergies operates in many different countries with diverse and complex economic, social, and cultural environments, where governments and civil society have particularly high expectations of the Company. In this context, TotalEnergies strives to act as a vehicle for positive change in society, contributing to the promotion of ethical principles in every country where it operates. TotalEnergies is committed to respecting internationally recognized human rights wherever it operates, particularly the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the fundamental conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, and the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights (VPSHR).
Fighting corruption
When security contractors or government forces in charge of protecting our employees and installations have to intervene, we make sure they have been vetted individually and received adequate training. We also perform analyses each year to assess the security risks at our sites.
Fighting tax evasion
With a presence in 130 countries through 1,149 consolidated entities, TotalEnergies carries out its operations in a constantly changing environment and is subject to an increasingly complex set of a tax regulation, which may be in conflict when combined or subject to varying interpretations, thus giving rise to potential tax risk. In this context, the Company has developed a responsible tax approach based on clear principles of action and rigorous governance rules as set out in its tax policy statement.
Promoting financial transparency
TotalEnergies is committed to ensuring full transparency of the revenue generated by its activities. The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) brings together international and local players from civil society. Its main purpose is to improve transparency in investments and transactions between governments and companies from the extractive industry, of mining and raw materials in EITI member countries.
This initiative also contributes to strengthening the principles of accountability, fair competition and good governance. TotalEnergies joined the initiative starting from 2022 and continues to be actively involved thanks also to the presence of a TotalEnergies representative on the EITI Board of Directors. The promotion of the principles of transparency is part of a framework that respects the sovereignty of the host countries: in collaboration with the secretariat of the initiative, the Company undertakes to promote the EITI principles among the host states in which it operates and to assist them in practical implementation of these principles.