MILAN (Reuters) -Eni is in talks with a strategic partner to sell a stake in its low carbon unit Plenitude, the CEO of the Italian energy group Claudio Descalzi said on Wednesday, adding that an initial public offering (IPO) would follow.
Descalzi told an energy conference in Milan the deal would help to set an overall value for Plenitude, which he said showed growth in all of its businesses.
Last month, two sources told Reuters Swiss asset manager Energy Infrastructure Partners (EIP) was working on a potential offer for a minority stake in the Eni subsidiary.
Eni, which last year froze IPO plans for Plenitude due to adverse market conditions, still aims to list the unit and Descalzi said in July it could happen this or next year.
In Milan, the CEO also said gas markets remain “very volatile” following the decline in Russian supplies to Europe, despite gas storage facilities in the continent being more than 95% full.
He said Eni would completely replace supplies from Russia’s Gazprom within 18-24 months.
Italy and other European countries have sought alternative sources of gas in reaction to the Russian invasion of Ukraine last year.
(Reporting by Francesca Landini and Giancarlo Navach, writing by Alvise Armellini, editing by Cristina Carlevaro and Barbara Lewis)
