Eni to buy Italian wind portfolio in renewable drive

The energy company has pledged to be carbon neutral by 2050

Eni launched a major overhaul last year to transition into renewables and reduce its oil and gas output. Getty

Eni has agreed to buy one of the largest onshore wind portfolios in Italy from fund manager Glennmont Partners, as part of plans to expand its green energy business.

The Italian energy group will buy a 315 megawatt portfolio comprising 13 plants, taking its overall wind capacity in Italy to 350MW, it said in a statement on Friday, without disclosing a price.

"This transaction represents an important step forward for Eni’s renewable energy growth and will enable us to reach four gigawatts of installed capacity in 2024," said Claudio Descalzi, chief executive.

He said the group would build new renewables capacity itself or make selective acquisitions, especially in countries where it had an existing broad customer base.

Eni, which has pledged to be carbon neutral by 2050, is targeting renewable capacity of 15GW in 2030 and 60GW in 2050.

The Glennmont deal comes as Eni picks up the pace on a major overhaul launched last year to transition into renewables and reduce its oil and gas output.

In April, it announced plans to spin off its retail and renewable energy businesses as a single entity, with a view to a potential listing of sale of a minority stake.

BNP Paribas advised Eni on the Italian wind portfolio deal, while majority owner Glennmont and PGGM Infrastructure Fund were advised by Rothschild and L&B Partners.