Australia: New Gas Discovery in the Browse Basin

TOTAL S.A.
                  

Total announces a gas discovery from the Mimia-1 exploration well on the WA-344P
permit (Total 40%), in Australia.

Total E&P Australia and Inpex (operator, 60%) acquired the WA-344P exploration
acreage in November 2007 and completed the Mimia-1 well in July 2008. A 72 metre
gas column was found and a production test completed recently confirmed the
discovery of gas and condensate.

The Mimia-1 well was drilled in a water depth of 254 metres and is located
approximately 20 kilometres north-east of the WA-285P (Inpex 76%, Total 24%)
which contains the giant Ichthys gas-condensate field (close to 13 Trillion
cubic feet of recoverable gas and 530 Million barrels of recoverable liquids).

Inpex and Total are preparing the development of the Ichthys field and are
considering how the Mimia discovery could best be incorporated into this
development.

Total in Australia

This latest discovery reaffirms Total's belief in the potential of the Browse
basin in the North West Shelf, where the Group has been present since 2006.
Total has interests in fourteen permits offshore of the northwest coast of
Australia, of which it operates four. In particular, the Group holds a 24%
interest in the WA-285P license, where the Ichthys field has been discovered,
and for which a liquefied natural gas development project is under preparation.
Production from this project should start up towards the middle of the next
decade.

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than 130 countries. Its 96,000 employees put their expertise to work in every
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rank player in chemicals. www.total.com