Eni and CNR prolong partnership to tackle energy transition challenges

Italian oil and gas company Eni and the National Research Council (CNR) have extended their collaboration in research and technological innovation in an attempt to navigate the challenges imposed by the energy transition.

Eni reported on Friday that the president of the CNR, Maria Chiara Carrozza, and Eni’s CEO, Claudio Descalzi, had signed the renewal of the framework agreement as part of joint research and technological innovation activities for a duration of three years, plus two additional optional years. 

Claudio Descalzi, Eni’s CEO, commented: “Innovation and technological development are the strategic key to successfully tackling the challenge of the energy transition, and we will only succeed in reducing the emissions of industries that vary widely in their characteristics and needs if we are able to harness them effectively and in a pragmatic way.

“For this reason, these fundamental areas must be strengthened by bringing together the best-in-class resources and skills to contribute to the decarbonisation process of an industrial system that has reached a crucial path.”

This agreement will make it possible to develop projects and initiatives to address the challenges of the energy transition through the identification of strategic areas of development. These areas include the identification of key technologies for resource development, decarbonization, energy saving, the circular economy and sustainability in processes related to local community development.

Maria Chiara Carrozza, the president of the CNR, explained: “The Eni-CNR collaboration identifies some strategic research and technological innovation paths for the energy transition: advanced and low carbon biofuels; reuse and valorisation of waste; CO2 capture, use and storage; wave motion energy; magnetic confinement fusion. These are technologies that are at the heart of future mobility, the circular economy, and global decarbonization and electrification efforts, which will require major synergies such as those which we have renewed today.”

The original partnership between Eni and the CNR started in 2009. According to Eni, this collaboration has led to innovative solutions in various fields over the years. This includes solar energy, the phyto-purification of contaminated water and soils and the reuse of CO2, seeing the registration of around 24 patents for proprietary technologies.

The company adds that the latest agreement sits alongside the joint research agreement from 2019, which led to the creation of four joint research centres, located in Southern Italy – Lecce, Gela, Metaponto and Portici – that contribute to the design of projects for sustainable environmental and economic development in Italy and worldwide.

In recent news, Eni agreed to sell a 49.9 per cent stake in two gas pipelines between Algeria and Italy to Snam for consideration of €385 million (over $437 million).