Total's CEO Christophe de Margerie has died in a plane crash at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport just after 10pm (Paris time) last night (20 October).
The 63-year-old was on a Dassauly Aviation SA Falcon business jet, which was bound for Paris, when it crashed into a snowplow late yesterday (20 October). Four other people were killed in the accident, including three crew members, said Total.
Total is the fourth-largest of the Western multinational oil majors by market capitalization, after Exxon, Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron, and the second-largest company in France.
Under de Margerie's reign, reserves-life, or the number of years of current production that could be replicated using existing reserves, rose in every year but one, the longest such streak for Total since at least 1998, according to Bloomberg.
De Margerie's career spans 40 years, starting in Total's finance unit. He joined Total in 1974 and later rose to CEO in 2007, and chairman in 2010. Earlier this year, de Margerie – nicknamed "Big Mustache", due to his facial hair – helped negotiate the Paris-based company's entry into Russian shale under a Siberian drilling venture with OAO Lukoil. The company is also a partner in the vast Russian gas development on the Yamal Peninsula.
Total was reevaluating plans to explore for shale oil in Western Siberia with partner OAO Lukoil amid economic sanctions against Russia, the company said last month.
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his condolences to French President Francois Hollande over de Margerie's death. In a statement, Putin called de Margerie "an outstanding French businessman who stood at the origins of many joint projects that laid the foundations for a long-term fruitful cooperation between Russia and France in the energy sector."
Putin continued, "We have lost a true friend of our country, but he will remain in our memories.”
A statement from Total said: "Our immediate thoughts go out to Margerie’s wife, children and loved ones, as well as to the families of the three other victims. Total’s employees are deeply appreciative of the support and sympathy received, both in France and in the many countries where Christophe de Margerie was admired and respected. Margerie devoted his life to building and promoting Total in France and internationally. He was equally devoted to Total’s 100,000 employees. As he would have wished, the company must continue to move forward."
Total said it was organized to ensure the continuity of both its governance and its business, allowing it to manage the consequences of de Margerie's death.
Total said the Governance and Ethics Committee (five members, chaired by Thierry Desmarest, Honorary Chairman and member of the Board of Directors of Total) will meet as soon as possible. This will be immediately followed by a meeting of the Board of Directors to make the necessary decisions.
Tributes have been paid to the CEO today, with many describing him as a colorful character, willing to go anywhere to explore for oil, who will be missed.
Maersk Oil's CEO Jakob Thomasen tweeted: "I am deeply saddened by the news, Christope de Margerie brought unique individual color to our industry that will be missed."
Eric Boullier, Racing director, McLaren: "The word 'legend' is often over-used, but in the case of Christophe de Margerie, who was tragically killed in a private aircraft accident at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow last night, it is entirely appropriate. Christophe was not only a great man but also a great friend. More than that, in fact, I wholeheartedly admired him. A wise, bold, determined and charismatic personality, and a proud Frenchman, he led Total from the front, and, from a Formula 1 point of view, he it was who steered his company's Formula 1 involvement in recent years. He will be very sorely missed."
Lukoil's president and CEO Vagit Alekperov said in a statement on Lukoil's Facebook page that the news of de Margerie's death came as "a total shock" and a "bitter blow." Alekperov continued: "He was my friend. The global oil industry has suffered a great loss. A man has died, whose professional qualities, experience, wisdom and ability to see things from a strategic perspective set the path for the global development of the oil and gas industry. Christophe saw a huge potential in joint Russian-French projects. LUKOIL and Total have been maintaining long-standing business relations. In the recent challenging months, Christophe had been an example of a man of honor and a staunch defender of the principles of fair partnership relations with Russia. He was a friend of our Company and our country. I would like to offer my deepest condolences to the family of Mr. de Margerie, all Total employees, as well as to the families and close friends of the air crash victims."
Alexey Miller, chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee said in a statement on Gazprom's website: "On behalf of the Gazprom Management Committee and on my own behalf I would like to extend my heartfelt condolences upon your grievous loss – the life of Christophe de Margerie, chairman and chief executive officer of Total tragically ended. A gifted leader, an influential politician, a man respected by everyone who knew him passed away. We deeply feel for the friends and family, for all who had the great honor to know Christophe de Margerie and work with him."
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