DOHA (Reuters) - TotalEnergies will continue to be listed in France, Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne said on Wednesday, as the company considers a listing in the United States.
On April 26, Pouyanne had told analysts TotalEnergies was "seriously" looking at a possible primary listing in New York to ensure easier access for U.S. investors, adding he would report back to the board by September.
On Wednesday, speaking at a panel at the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha, he said, "We never said we will leave France.
"I repeat, we'll stay in France, we'll be listed in France. The question is - can we better offer some shares to our U.S. shareholders?"
Pouyanne added, "We have more and more U.S. shareholders, and we have less European shareholders, including French shareholders - probably because of all the debate about ESG, etc. That's the reality. And then you see quite a different valuation between the U.S. markets and the European market."
It was therefore the "fiduciary duty" of the TotalEnegies board to study a U.S. listing, he added.
"And then, when we have studied, we will come back. And again, it's not a matter of politics, it's a matter of business. And I'm happy to see that all the French politicians are - want to keep TotalEnergies."
In a May 2 radio interview, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said it was important for the French oil major to stay listed in France.
Poyanne said the LNG market was "tense" but would have more supply and, as a result, lower prices by 2027-2030.
"Today you see even - because of the European market becoming an LNG market after the Russian Ukraine war - you see that we are in a tense market where in fact supply is even short demand.
"So probably we'll have by 2027, 2030 quite a lot of supply," he said, adding that lower prices would draw new customers.
"So I'm not afraid. I think there is a place - a clear place for the gas in the transition."
(Reporting by Andrew Mills; Writing by Yousef Saba; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Clarence Fernandez)
