Analyse de la gouvernance climatique dans l’entreprise TotalEnergies: stratégies et impacts locaux

Thesis Abstract

This study investigates how climate governance is conceptualized, operationalized, and locally manifested within TotalEnergies, addressing the gap between global corporate commitments and regional environmental outcomes in a multinational oil and gas company. The problem centers on ambiguities in translating corporate climate policies into measurable local impacts on emissions, biodiversity, and community resilience, and how governance mechanisms influence stakeholder trust and legitimacy in host communities. The aim is to assess the effectiveness of TotalEnergies’ climate governance framework and its local implementation, with specific objectives to (1) map the governance architecture linking corporate strategy to regional energy projects, (2) evaluate the coherence between declared targets and on-the-ground actions, (3) quantify local emission trends and environmental indicators in selected operating sites, (4) explore community perceptions and governance legitimacy through stakeholder interviews, and (5) identify drivers and barriers of successful local governance integration. The study adopts a mixed-methods design combining qualitative case analysis with quantitative measurement. The population comprises corporate policy documents, environmental reports, and local project records from TotalEnergies’ operations in two contrasting regions—West Africa and Southeast Asia—over the last five years. A purposive sample of 12 policy documents, 8 local environmental impact assessments, and 10 site-level performance reports will be analyzed, complemented by semi-structured interviews with 25 stakeholders (corporate sustainability managers, regional directors, local government officials, and community representatives) and 40 community residents living near project sites. Data collection instruments include a structured document coding scheme, interview guides aligned with the theoretical framework, emission and energy intensity data extracted from site reports, and environmental indicators (air, water, biodiversity metrics) obtained from official monitoring datasets. The validity and reliability of instruments will be ensured through triangulation, pilot testing, intercoder reliability checks (Cohen’s kappa), and sensitivity analyses. Analytical approaches integrate theory-driven and data-driven methods. The study employs the Institutional Theory of Governance to interpret how formal rules, norms, and beliefs shape local implementation, complemented by the Stakeholder Theory to assess legitimacy and engagement outcomes. Quantitative analyses will include multiple regression and fixed-effects panel models to examine relationships between governance inputs (policy clarity, target alignment, transparency measures) and local outcomes (emissions intensity, spillover indicators, community satisfaction). Qualitative data will undergo thematic analysis to identify patterns in governance practices, perceived accountability, and trust, aided by NVivo coding and cross-case synthesis. A conceptual model will be developed to link corporate climate governance mechanisms to measurable local effects, incorporating feedback loops from community insights into governance refinement. Expected findings anticipate a partial alignment between centralized targets and local performance, with regional variances driven by governance clarity, stakeholder engagement quality, and the strength of accountability mechanisms. It is anticipated that sites with robust local governance integration—characterized by transparent reporting, early community consultation, and adaptive management—will exhibit more favorable environmental indicators and higher community trust. The study also expects to identify gaps in monitoring systems, particularly regarding real-time emissions data and biodiversity metrics, and to reveal tensions between business risk considerations and local developmental needs. The contribution to knowledge lies in detailing how global climate governance translates into local practice within a major energy corporation, enriching the literature on corporate climate governance, legitimacy, and stakeholder engagement in extractive industries. The research offers a diagnostic framework for evaluating the effectiveness of multinational governance structures at the local level and advances methodological integration of document analysis, stakeholder interviews, and environmental performance metrics. Policy and managerial implications include actionable recommendations for tightening governance alignment, enhancing transparency, and codifying community-based monitoring to improve trust, reduce environmental risk, and strengthen the social license to operate. The study concludes that sustained improvements require iterative governance learning, standardized local indicators, and inclusive co-management arrangements between TotalEnergies and affected communities.