TotalEnergies' greenwashing advertising has been ruled illegal

What did the Court ruling say?

On 23rd October 2025, a Paris Court found TotalEnergies’ advertising illegal.

The Court ruled that the company has misled consumers in its advertising, by giving the impression that it is part of the solution to climate change despite continuing to promote and sell more fossil fuels. 

Specifically, TotalEnergies claimed that it put 'climate at the heart of its strategy, with the aim of providing cleaner, safer and more affordable energy to as many people as possible' and that it had set the ambition to achieve net zero by 2050.

However, the French oil and gas giant has mapped out plans for fossil fuel expansion, with new oil and gas projects in Iraq, Denmark, Tanzania and Uganda – which the case argued flies in the face of the energy transition, and the company’s own policies and marketing.

This is the first greenwashing judgment ever issued against the oil industry’s net zero narrative.

What did the Court order TotalEnergies to do?

The Court ordered that within one month, TotalEnergies must stop the unlawful advertising and must display the ruling prominently on its website for a period of 180 days. If it fails to do so, it will be fined €10,000 a day.

On the other advertising claims, including those promoting fossil gas and biofuels, the Court found that these adverts were not sufficiently connected to the sale of products to consumers, and so it did not look into whether these claims were misleading or not.

What does this ruling mean?

The ruling is expected to have a knock-on effect on Big Oil’s marketing across other jurisdictions, both for TotalEnergies’ campaigns across Europe and for similar marketing claims by other oil and gas majors.

What did the case against TotalEnergies argue?

Along with environmental groups Greenpeace France, Friends of the Earth France and Notre Affaire à Tous, we went to court in France to hold TotalEnergies accountable over greenwashing.

‘Greenwashing’ is a term used to describe instances whereby a company uses advertising and public messaging to appear more climate friendly and environmentally sustainable than it really is.

Total has rebranded itself as TotalEnergies, with a big advertising campaign featuring wind turbines and renewable energy projects, giving the impression that the company is part of the solution to climate change. TotalEnergies tells the public it is aiming for net zero by 2050 and will be a 'major player in the energy transition'.

The reality however, is that TotalEnergies is one of the biggest polluters in the world, with greenhouse gas emissions higher than those of the whole of France. The company is planning a massive fossil fuel expansion, increasing its production of polluting gas, and relying on as-yet-unproven technology, while avoiding meaningful action to reduce emissions this decade.

The court claim argues that the company’s advertising is misleading the public by skewing the meaning of concepts like 'net zero'. It fools us into thinking that Total is a frontrunner in working towards net zero emissions, when in reality it is producing more and more fossil fuels, despite the fact that achieving net zero by 2050 will require a huge reduction.

When asked about the ad campaign, TotalEnergies’ CEO denied it was greenwashing.

Fossil fuel industry strategies of confusion and delay are nothing new – they've been at the centre of the industry's efforts for decades, allowing big oil, gas and coal companies to continue profiting while climate change worsens.

Consumers should not be manipulated like this, with big budget marketing campaigns. Fossil fuel companies like Total should have no power or platform to influence consumer choice in the midst of the climate emergency.

So we intervened in support of the case and went to court to argue that Total’s marketing is against the law.

Why do companies need to stop investing in fossil fuels?

Scientists say that to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, we need to halve the world’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Currently more than 70% of the world’s emissions come from fossil fuels, and fossil fuel producers must focus on cutting their production every year if we are to avoid the worst climate impacts.

We don’t have the time for TotalEnergies and other fossil fuel companies to mislead consumers about their products, their role in causing climate breakdown, or their plan to continue investing in and producing fossil fuels in the face of clear scientific warnings against doing so. We need action right now.

When did the court case happen?

The hearing took place on 5th June 2025 and we received the ruling on 23rd October 2025.

Following the filing of the claim by Greenpeace France, Friends of the Earth France and Note Affaire à Tous on 3^rd March 2022, we submitted our intervention in support of the claim on 18th May. 

In May 2023, the legal action cleared a major hurdle as a judge allowed the case to proceed. 

A translation of the court claim can be found here.

A translation of the intervention is available here and the original version (in French) here.