TotalEnergies third-quarter profit soars

French energy giant TotalEnergies said Thursday surging global oil and gas prices helped it post a massive jump in profits in the third quarter.

Net profits soared 43 percent from the same period last year to $6.6 billion, with record performances for its natural gas and liquefied natural gas units.

The company has now earned $17.3 billion over the first nine months of the year, more than the $16 billion in profits it posted last year.

The enormous profits may add fuel to the raging debate in France over whether to impose a windfall tax on energy firms to help fund measures to protect consumers from price hikes.

President Emmanuel Macron reiterated his opposition to such a measure in a prime-time television appearance on Wednesday evening.

TotalEnergies, which has been plagued by strikes in France that have led to petrol shortages at pumps and which the government has had to break, announced it would pay its workers a bonus.

“In this favorable environment, taking into account income and production taxes of $26 billion worldwide, the company is implementing a balanced value-sharing policy with an exceptional one-month-salary bonus in 2022 to all its employees worldwide,” it said in a statement.

TotalEnergies also confirmed its announcement from last month to return to shareholders 35 to 40 percent of cash flow, and maintained its interim quarterly dividend at a higher rate from last year.

im/rl/imm