Total seeks new boss as Russia, France probe CEO plane crash

French oil giant Total was scrambling today to find a new boss after its chief executive Christophe de Margerie was killed in Moscow when his private jet hit a snowplough on takeoff.
Executives were meeting to decide who could take over the helm of one of the world's biggest energy companies.
In Moscow, French investigators joined a local team to probe Monday night's accident, which Russian experts said was caused by criminal negligence on the part of senior airport officials.
Questions rose over the safety of the Vnukovo airport used primarily by VIPs, as Russian media reported that an intern was in charge of directing air traffic at the time of the crash.

The snowplough driver, who was accused by investigators of having been drunk on the job, meanwhile said he drove on to the runway after losing his bearings.
After the shock at the sudden death of their charismatic 63-year-old boss, known by the affectionate nickname "Big Moustache", managers at Total sought to reassure investors and the industry that a smooth succession is under way.

"The group is set up to ensure the proper continuity of its governance and its activities, to deal with this tragic event," Total's secretary general Jean-Jacques Guilbaud said.
In keeping with Total's tradition, the new boss will likely be recruited internally.

Union sources say honorary chairman Thierry Desmarest, 68, could be tapped in the interim, as he was the man who had prepared De Margerie for the job in the first place.
Desmarest held both the chairman and chief executive posts from 1995 to 2007, before handing over the CEO job to De Margerie. He stayed on as chairman until 2010.
But a longer term solution would have to be found for the group which employs 100,000 people and posted revenues of 189.5 billion euros in 2013.
Possible candidates include Patrick Pouyanne, the head of the refining and chemicals division, as well as Philippe Boisseau, in charge of supply marketing and new energies.