Takeaways

• The Paris Judicial Court has ordered TotalEnergies to include Scope 3 emissions in its vigilance plan within six months.
• The ruling recognizes customer-use emissions as a key climate risk but stops short of ordering production cuts or banning new fossil fuel projects.
• The updated vigilance plan will be reviewed by the court when proceedings resume next year.

A French court has directed TotalEnergies to strengthen its climate strategy by addressing Scope 3 emissions, the greenhouse gas emissions produced when customers use the company's oil and gas products.

The Paris Judicial Court ruled that the energy company must revise its legally required vigilance plan within six months to identify and manage the climate risks linked to these emissions. The updated plan will be reviewed by the court when the case resumes early next year.

The decision marks a significant step in how companies may be expected to assess climate-related impacts beyond their direct operations.

The lawsuit was filed in 2020 by environmental groups Notre Affaire à Tous, Sherpa, France Nature Environnement, along with the City of Paris. The case was based on France's Duty of Vigilance Law, introduced in 2017, which requires large companies to identify and prevent environmental and human rights risks arising from their activities.

Read More: The 10 Best Scope 3 Emissions Reporting Software for Audit-Ready Compliance in 2026

The organizations argued that TotalEnergies' vigilance plan failed to properly account for the climate impacts of burning the fossil fuels it sells. According to the plaintiffs, these customer-use emissions make up nearly 90% of the company's total greenhouse gas footprint.

In its judgment, the Paris Judicial Court agreed that climate-related harm caused by the company's activities falls under the scope of the vigilance law. The court stated that Scope 3 emissions should be included because there is a direct connection between producing oil and gas and the emissions generated when those products are ultimately used.

As a result, the court found that TotalEnergies' existing vigilance plan was incomplete. It ordered the company to update its risk assessment to include Scope 3 emissions and outline measures that address the associated climate risks.

However, the ruling did not grant all the requests made by the plaintiffs.

The NGOs had asked the court to require TotalEnergies to align its business with a 1.5°C global warming pathway, establish interim emissions reduction targets, cut oil and gas production by specific deadlines, and immediately stop new hydrocarbon exploration projects.

The court declined to impose these measures, explaining that the Duty of Vigilance Law allows judges to review whether companies have identified and addressed risks, but does not give them the authority to set detailed business targets or operational decisions on a company's behalf.

The judges also clarified that companies cannot be held responsible for all climate change resulting from human activities since the Industrial Revolution. Instead, the law requires businesses to identify and respond to the climate risks directly linked to their own operations and value chains.

The coalition behind the lawsuit welcomed the ruling, calling it an important step toward holding large fossil fuel companies accountable for their contribution to climate change. The groups said the decision reinforces the responsibility of major corporations to help protect communities and ecosystems from the growing impacts of global warming.

Following the judgment, TotalEnergies said it would comply with the court's request by updating its vigilance plan to include customers' emissions. The company added that it will draw on information from its sustainability reporting, including initiatives such as expanding electricity generation and biofuels production to help customers reduce emissions.

Also Read: Top 8 Carbon and Climate Solutions Leading Climate Action

At the same time, TotalEnergies noted that the court rejected demands to halt new oil and gas developments or require reductions in its production, describing that part of the decision as a positive outcome for the company.

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Source: ESGtoday