Patrick Pouyanne is the chairman and chief executive officer of TotalEnergies, the French multinational energy company, a position he has held since 2015. He joined the company in 1997 and held senior roles in its refining and exploration and production divisions before becoming chief executive.
Case
Interior paid TotalEnergies, Invenergy, and Bluepoint Wind more than $2.3 billion to cancel offshore wind leases in 2026. State attorneys general and members of Congress say the payments broke the Judgment Fund Act. Interior says the payments were lawful, voluntary refunds.
Role at the time: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, TotalEnergies
Response to this claim
The payment TotalEnergies is receiving is not taxpayer money but the return of funds the company itself paid to the Treasury for its leases in 2022.
“my money that I gave in '22 to the Treasury, which is coming back”
Pouyanne defends the payment's legitimacy by characterizing it as the return of the company's own funds rather than an improper use of public money, directly addressing the taxpayer-cost objection at the center of the Judgment Fund dispute.
Statement dates: March 24, 2026
Statement dates: March 24, 2026
