Eni

Stock performance

History

Eni was founded by Enrico Mattei as a state-owned energy company tasked with securing oil and gas supplies for postwar Italy, and Mattei became a defining and controversial figure in global energy history for negotiating unusually favorable, partnership-style deals with oil-producing nations that challenged the dominance of the major Western oil companies of the era. Mattei died in a 1962 plane crash later widely believed to have been sabotage, but the assertive, government-backed diplomatic approach to securing energy supply he established remained a hallmark of Eni's culture for decades afterward.

Business model

Eni is an integrated energy company engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, refining, chemicals, and an expanding renewables and energy-transition business, with a particular emphasis on natural gas and long-term supply agreements with producing nations, especially across Africa and the Middle East. Its historical relationship-driven approach to securing exploration and production rights in developing energy-producing countries remains a distinctive part of its strategy.

Market position

Eni is the largest energy company in Italy and one of the mid-to-large global oil and gas majors, generally smaller than giants like ExxonMobil or Shell but holding a distinctive strength in African gas exploration and production. It has positioned natural gas, rather than renewables alone, as a central pillar of its energy-transition strategy, betting on gas as a lower-carbon bridge fuel.

Country impact

Eni is one of the largest companies in Italy and has historically played a quasi-diplomatic role in securing Italian energy supply, particularly natural gas from North Africa, which became especially critical to Italian and European energy security after Russian gas supplies were curtailed following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The Italian state retains a significant ownership stake and strategic interest in the company.