TotalEnergies cuts share buyback as crude prices remain pressured

(Sharecast News) - TotalEnergies cut its first-quarter share buyback on Wednesday, after a drop in oil prices weighed on earnings, while booking a significant offshore wind impairment and advancing portfolio changes in refining and exploration. The French energy giant said it would repurchase $750m of shares in the first quarter, down from $1.5bn in the final three months of 2025 and at the lower end of its prior guidance.

For the full year, it said it planned buybacks of between $3bn and $6bn, with flexibility to adjust the pace depending on oil prices.

The quarterly dividend was left unchanged at 85 euro cents per share.

Adjusted net income fell 13% year on year in the fourth quarter to $3.84bn, broadly in line with analyst expectations of $3.81bn, as crude prices remained under pressure following an 18% decline last year.

Chief executive Patrick Pouyanne said oil supply "remains abundant" and the market is "rather trending down", adding that sanctions on Russia were contributing to a buildup of the country's crude at sea.

The company assumed Brent crude at $60 a barrel for 2026, compared with current levels near $69.

Upstream production was expected to grow by about 3%, supported by project start-ups in Brazil, Iraq, Qatar, Algeria and Uganda.

However, results were hit by impairments totalling $900m in the fourth quarter, including a $700m charge mainly related to offshore wind within the integrated power segment.

Net power production from solar, wind and hydro rose year on year to 8.1 terawatt-hours from 6.5 TWh, while the renewables portfolio expanded 2% to 19 gigawatts.

Separately, the company had taken full ownership of the 180,000 barrels-per-day Zeeland refinery in the Netherlands, re-acquiring the remaining 45% stake from Russia's Lukoil, according to a report from Reuters overnight citing sources familiar with the matter.

The move followed US sanctions on Lukoil and came as refining margins in Europe were expected to surge in the fourth quarter.

At the same time it emerged that in Namibia, the government said it would not recognise an agreement under which TotalEnergies and Petrobras sought to acquire 42.5% each in the PEL104 offshore exploration licence, citing a failure to obtain prior ministerial approval.

TotalEnergies said it signed agreements to buy a 42.5% operated interest in the block, which lies north of the Mopane discovery, and would become operator alongside Petrobras, Namcor and Eight Offshore Investments if the transaction received the required approvals.

At 0927 CET (0827 GMT), shares in TotalEnergies were up 1.26% in Paris at €63.30.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.