Italy can become Europe’s energy hub, says Meloni

Italy can become an energy hub for the whole of Europe thanks to the ‘Mattei Plan’ devised by the government to invest and collaborate with African countries, said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni while speaking at an event organised by Eni on Tuesday.

Meloni also stressed that Italy’s geographic location allows it to aspire to the role of a natural energy supply hub for Europe. To do this, the current government has designed the “Mattei Plan”, which envisions a series of “equal and beneficial” partnerships with African countries and those bordering the Mediterranean.

“The energy issue is strategic and certainly will be increasingly so. The war in Ukraine has triggered a crisis (…), but this crisis, I am convinced, can also become an opportunity”, Meloni said.

“With the Mattei Plan, we intend to reconcile Italy’s national interest with the right of our partners to experience a season of development and progress”, Meloni stressed.

“The energy issue is also crucial to give a fairer and more equitable direction to the ecological transition, which for us must walk hand in hand with social sustainability and economic sustainability. To do this, we need all technologies: those already in use, those we are experimenting with and those we have yet to discover”, the prime minister added.

These include renewable energy, gas, biofuels, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide capture. Eni is also working on producing fusion energy, a “clean and unlimited source of energy” that would allow Italy to be independent in terms of energy supply finally.

Italy has progressively preferred oil to gas and has invested in domestic gas production rather than imports, especially after the outbreak of war in Ukraine that led to the disruption of Russian gas supplies.

“This has allowed us to be present across the entire value chain and consolidate our relationship with the countries where we operate, primarily in Africa, establishing long-term alliances and contributing to the economic and social development of those countries”, said Claudio Desclazi, Eni’s chief executive officer.

Descalzi led all of Meloni’s institutional trips to African countries such as Libya, Algeria, Ethiopia, and Tunisia. On each occasion, Descalzi was present and signed cooperation agreements with the respective national entities aimed at grafting equitably beneficial cooperation in energy production.

(Federica Pascale | Euractiv.it)