Operator: The next question is from Bertrand Hodee of Kepler Cheuvreux.
Bertrand Hodee: Two questions, if I may. So first is coming back on the cash distribution to shareholders. I understand the 35%, 40% through cycle commitment is very clear. But when thinking about 2023, given your balance sheet and if oil price there where they are, $80 plus, strong refining margin, what could refrain the Board to go above 40% cash distribution to shareholders? And my second question is a follow-up on LNG. You indicated that you generally hedge over a 1-year period. Last year, my belief was that you had probably hedged at lower prices than the forward curve. Now given the recent fall in natural gas spot prices and LNG prices and the forward curve, how should we think of your hedging position over the next 12 months?
Patrick Pouyanne: First one, the Board, I’m Chairman of the Board, so I had to convince myself. And so just to answer fully, the Board — I’m the Chairman of the Board, so I’m fully consistent with myself, I would say. And of course, we — there is — we — no, I think, honestly, don’t be — again, don’t — I mean, we are very consistent through the cycle. We did not reduce this dividend at a time where there are many reasons to do it in 2020, more reason to do it than to maintain it. We do it because we want to demonstrate our consistency, and that we are fundamentally resilient. So if you compare the increase of 7% to 8% that we proposed today to people who have got the dividend. You say it’s less. Yes, it’s less. But okay, that’s a game that I will not play.
I prefer to be consistent for the cycle. And again, I think it’s an increase. So you should look to that as it was asked to me by — I think, it was Oswald, the first question, if I remember, long time, we were more at under 5%. We go in years, and so we recognize it. But again, for me, it’s very important that it has to be supported for cycles, and we don’t want to come to banks anymore. The balance sheet, you’re right, give us more to support it. This is why we go up. But again, I think we have also the buybacks to continue to feed this superior — this higher in the future. Let’s see what — it’s difficult to anticipate what will happen fully in ’23. So we have already good news to you and to your shareholders. You’ve seen that last year, we did not hesitate to give a special dividend.
We’ll see what will be the price in ’23. LNG was hedged in ’22 with price. And I hope not. Otherwise, I will be super unhappy with Stephane and his team because the price in ’22 were incredibly high. So normally, ’23 will benefit from this hedging. Or I don’t understand. By the way, today, we are lower — the present TTF level is lower than the average of last year. So I should have more returns from ’23 from this hedging in ’22. I mean — so I don’t fully understand your question. And we’ll continue. We have a policy, which is not to hedge everything. But we hedge, and we want to hedge. So why don’t we hedge everything? Because we experienced in ’22 the free port interruption on which we had to take. Because hedging is fine, unless you have a physical issue.
