Total SA (FP) began life as Cie Francaise des Petroles, or CFP, almost a century ago. Thirty years since changing its name, the French oil giant is fighting to prevent its “Can’t Find Petroleum” moniker from coming back. Three years and $7.3 billion into an exploration drive, Chief Executive Officer Christophe de Margerie still finds large discoveries elusive. Better drilling results — at least 12 “high-impact” wells are planned this year — are critical to bolster output and profit. Total will say tomorrow adjusted net income fell 11 percent last year to 11.1 billion euros ($15.1 billion), according to the average estimate of 22 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. “Total has been quite disappointed with its exploration,” said Theepan Jothilingam, an oil industry analyst at Nomura Holdings Inc. “There will be a reassessment of returns on capital that has been spent on the effort. Questions will be raised in 12 […]