10 - Integrating Climate into our Strategy
3 QUESTIONS FOR
PATRICIA BARBIZET
Lead Independent Director of Total
“The Board
of Directors supports
the publication
of this report”
You were appointed Lead
Independent Director of Total
on December 19, 2015. What
does your role involve?
The Lead Independent Director
helps to ensure efficient governance
of the company in accordance
with current practice. This role
is considered to be useful by many
investors and proxy advisory firms
when the positions of Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer
are combined, as is the case
at Total since the management
transition led by Patrick Pouyanné.
My responsibility is to ensure that
the Board of Directors runs smoothly
and follows its rules of procedure.
As Chairwoman of the Governance
& Ethics Committee, I’m also
in charge of leading the review
of the Board’s work and preventing
conflicts of interest. And, along
with the Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer, I’m a primary
contact for shareholders.
You have been a Total director
since 2008. How has the Board
of Directors’ approach to climate
issues changed over time?
The Board has always taken
climate issues seriously. But what
has changed significantly over
the years is their importance
in Total’s strategy. In 2008,
climate issues were treated as
a completely separate environmental
risk requiring measures to reduce
the footprint of its activities.
More recently, these issues have
been fully integrated into the
company’s business and strategic
vision. Today, Total’s long-term
strategy is built on addressing
climate-related challenges.
What work has the Board
undertaken in this area since 2015?
In 2015, as every year, the Board
of Directors examined climate
issues during its review of the
strategies for Total’s business
segments, presented by their
respective senior executives.
Mr. Pouyanné also brought us up
to date on the work carried out
as part of the Oil & Gas Climate
Initiative, in particular the meeting
held in Paris in October 2015
that brought together the chief
executives of the leading oil and gas
companies that have committed
to fighting climate change. The Audit
Committee also carries out more
detailed work on environmental
risks during its review of the
performance indicators published
by Total in its management report.
These indicators are audited by
an independent external organization.
In addition, starting this year
the Compensation Committee
has changed the criteria for
the Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer’s variable compensation
to put more emphasis on achieving
HSE and CSR objectives.
The Board is fully committed
to climate issues and this
commitment will continue to support
Total’s development in 2016. That
is why we endorsed the company’s
suggestion of publishing this
Climate Report to coincide with
the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting.
A STRONGER LINK TO THE CHAIRMAN
AND CEO’S COMPENSATION
In 2015, the portion relating to the HSE/CSR
performance criteria taken into account
when calculating Mr. Pouyanné’s variable
compensation was set at a maximum
of 16% of his base salary. For 2016,
the Board of Directors increased
this portion to 30%, with 20% tied
to safety performance and 10% to CSR
performance. The latter is measured based
on the achievement of targets for carbon
emissions, energy efficiency and Total’s
position in the rankings published
by non-financial rating agencies.