Eni has completed the sale of a 49.99% stake in its carbon capture and storage (CCS) business to Global Infrastructure Partners, a BlackRock-backed infrastructure investment fund, giving the two groups joint control of the unit, the Italian energy company said on Thursday.
The transaction forms part of Eni’s strategy to spin off selected businesses and bring in external partners to help fund investment. The stake sold is larger than in previous transactions involving its low-carbon units Plenitude and Enilive, where partner holdings were capped at 30%.
Eni’s CCS holding company operates the Liverpool Bay and Bacton projects in the UK, as well as the L10-CCS project in the Netherlands. The unit also holds the right to acquire Eni’s 50% stake in a carbon capture project developed jointly with Italian gas grid operator Snam.
Eni said additional projects could be added to the portfolio in the medium term, although it did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
“This strategic partnership enhances the industrial potential and value of the portfolio projects, reinforces Eni’s ambition to be a leading global player in the carbon capture and storage sector, and paves the way for future growth opportunities,” the company said in a statement.
Carbon capture and storage technology involves capturing carbon dioxide from industrial processes or at the point of emission and storing it underground. The International Energy Agency has said CCS could play a key role in achieving global climate goals, although critics continue to question its commercial viability and warn that it may prolong reliance on fossil fuels.
