News on the front of energy innovation in Italy, protagonists Eni and Snam. As for the six-legged dog, it has just signed a contract with Safe (a subsidiary of SAFE&CEC, the newco 51% owned by Landi Renzo born from the merger of Safe and Clean Energy Compression) for the supply of 20 methane distribution systems, and relative maintenance, intended for refueling stations, both for cars and heavy vehicles, of the Eni network throughout the country. The agreement has a duration of five years: for the first three, Safe, a company specializing in the development of solutions for gas storage, will be engaged in the supply and installation of the assets (i.e., the equipment consisting of compressor, dryiers, dispenser , control and storage system), while in the next two years it will provide the related maintenance services.
The agreement also provides that some stations will be built from scratch, while others will undergo revamping, the latter intervention foreseen for the first stations located in Northern Italy, which will be delivered in the autumn of 2019. The renovation according to more modern and secure refueling points already existing, as well as the construction of new plants, will bring the number of methane stations nationwide to 1.342, today undersized but growing in the plans of Eni and also of Snam.
As far as Snam is concerned, one has started in Campania hydrogen experimentation, which represents a key element in terms of decarbonisation and the use of clean energy sources. In Contursi Terme, in the province of Salerno, the company that manages the national gas network is specifically experimenting lintroduction of a mixture of hydrogen (at 5% by volume) and natural gas in the Italian gas transmission network. The project, the first of its kind in Europe, involves the supply of H2NG (mixture of hydrogen and gas) to two industrial companies in the area, a pasta factory and a mineral water bottling company.
Hydrogen, according to Snam in a note, “will play a crucial role in the ensure the achievement of European and global decarbonisation goals to 2050″. The combustion of hydrogen, in fact, does not generate carbon dioxide emissions. In perspective, imoreover, “green” hydrogen produced through electrolysis from renewable sources such as sun and wind will allow these non-programmable resources to benefit from the capillary gas transport network and storage, helping to face the challenge of green energy intermittence. According to a recent study by the consultancy company Navigant, promoted by the Gas for Climate consortium (of which Snam is also a member), Europe has a potential by 2050 of 270 billion cubic meters of renewable gas (about 170 billion cubic meters of hydrogen and 100 billion cubic meters of biomethane), capable of facilitating the achievement of decarbonisation objectives thanks to existing infrastructures with annual savings of 217 billion euros compared to a scenario that envisages a minimum contribution from gas.
“The first injection of hydrogen in Europe into a transport network with direct supply to industrial customers – he declares the managing director of Snam Marco Alverà – projects Snam and our country into the future of clean energy. Hydrogen will be increasingly important in Snam's strategies, we have the skills and technologies to become leaders in this sector too. We strongly wanted to start this innovative project in Southern Italy and in Campania, confirming our deep bond with the territory".
The experimentation of the supply of H2NG will continue for about a month. By applying the percentage of 5% of hydrogen to the total gas transported annually by Snam, 3,5 billion cubic meters could be injected into the network each year, a quantity equivalent to the annual consumption of 1,5 million households and which would allow reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2,5 million tons, corresponding to the total emissions of all cars in a city the size of Rome or half the cars in a region the size of Campania.
Finally, for Snam, there are also news on the corporate front. The businessman Romano Minozzi, president and founder of Iris Ceramica, rose from 6,02% to 6,62%. This is what emerges from the attendance atenergy group shareholders' meeting, in which the first shareholder remains Cdp Reti with 30,37%. Among other relevant shareholders also Blackrock and Lazard Asset Management, both within a whisker of 5%. Investors are pleased with the shareholders' meeting, who reward the stock on the Stock Exchange Snam with a gain of half a percentage point around noon, to 4,587 euros per share.
