Italgas towards conquering gas distribution in Europe. Over the weekend the 5 billion euro agreement to acquire the Italian competitor (2i Rete Gas) and today the strategic plan that doubles investments between now and 2030. Thus Italgas, 26% controlled by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and 13% by Snam, sends a clear signal to the European gas market: the objective is to become the first operator in the sector.
The new 2024-2030 strategic plan establishes a 92% increase in investments which go from 7.8 billion in the previous plan to 15.6 billion today. The group wants to accelerate the innovation and digitalization of its infrastructures to face the energy transition of the coming years. A plan that “will go down in history” as that “of the creation of the European champion in gas distribution”, commented CEO Paolo Gallo. Earnings growth is estimated at double digits by 2030.
A key element of the plan is the digitalisation of networks, both in Italy and Greece, with a focus on the advanced use of artificial intelligence for more efficient monitoring of networks, optimizing consumption and reducing operating costs. Then there is the chapter of expansion of the group which is not limited to Italy. Through its Greek subsidiary Enaon, Italgas plans investments of 1 billion euros for the development of the gas distribution network in Greece, with the aim of extending it from the current 7,924 kilometers to over 11 thousand kilometers by 2030. The plan expects to reach to 1 million Greek customers, from the current 600 thousand. The plan includes 450 million euros of investments for the water sector over the next 7 years and another 300 million euros for energy efficiency.
From a financial point of view, the group aims to achieve revenues of 3.6 billion euros and an Ebitda of 2.8 billion euros by 2030. The company expects an average annual growth of 13%, with an increase in profit per 10% share. Dividends are also revised upwards in the plan. Through 2026, the dividend will grow 5% annually compared to 35.2 cents per share distributed in 2023.
The strategic plan comes after the weekend’s acquisition of 2i Rete Gas, which has 4.9 million customers, from F2i and Finavias. A strategic move that allowed the group to exceed 50% of the market share in Italy and take the path to obtaining leadership at a European level. An operation worth 5.3 billion euros (3.2 to repay the debt contracted by 2i Rete Gas), carried out through a “bridge” loan initially subscribed by JP Morgan. The operation, awaiting approval from the Competition and Market Authority, should be completed in the first half of 2025.
