Former Total boss Thierry Desmarest, who chaired the oil company from 1995 to 2010 then interim in 2014 upon the death of Christophe de Margerie, died on Wednesday at the age of 78, the TotalEnergies group said, confirming news from the newspaper The world.
2 mins
He joined Total in 1981, as Deputy Director of Total Algeria, then rose through the ranks of the very powerful and profitable Exploration-Production division: Director Latin America and West Africa in 1983, Director Americas, France, Far East in 1988 , then general manager in 1989.
He became president of Total in 1995 and led the group for 15 years, until 2010. In 2014, he returned to the helm of the group to act as interim manager following the death of Christophe Margerie in a plane accident in Moscow airport. This term of office as Chairman of the Board of Directors expires on December 18, 2015 due to the age limit set by the group. Patrick Pouyanné replaces him as president and CEO.
Read alsoChristophe de Margerie, the offensive boss of Total
During the presidency of Thierry Desmarest, the group, which was still called Total, became one of the main world oil companies.
Despite his success in making Total one of the five oil majors, Thierry Desmarest saw his image tarnished by his management of sinking of theErika off the coast of Brittany, and the oil spill which followed in December 1999, but also by theAZF chemical plant explosion on September 21, 2001 in Toulouse. He was particularly criticized for his technocratic cold reaction to emotion. The explosion killed 30 people and destroyed or damaged nearly 30,000 buildings.
In February 2018, he withdrew from the board of directors of the car manufacturer Renault, where he had served since April 2008, “exclusively due to personal and age considerations”. “ Aged 72, it is normal that I leave the board of directors of the Renault group “, he declared.
(With AFP)