Having examined the results, Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said:
“In a year like no other in the history of the energy industry, Eni has proven the robustness and flexibility of its business model by reacting swiftly and effectively to the extraordinary crisis context, while progressing the Company’s irreversible path for the energy transition. In the space of a few months after the outbreak of the pandemic we reduced capital spending and limited the impact of the sharp drop in crude oil prices on the cash flow, strengthening our liquidity and preserving the robustness of our balance sheet. The fourth quarter operating profit and net profit outperformed estimates, achieved through a 44 $/barrel oil price, underpinned by our operating cash generation and the effectiveness of our response to the crisis. The upstream business is strengthening its recovery, while our businesses in the production and sale of decarbonized products achieved excellent results in the year, driven by a 17% Ebit increase from Eni Gas e Luce, a 130% increase in bio-refining processing and 1 GW of new solar and wind generation capacity already installed or sanctioned. We laid foundations for strong growth in renewables by entering two strategic markets, the US and the Dogger Bank wind project in the UK’s North Sea offshore wind market, which will be the largest in the world in the sector. Through leveraging the actions we put in place, our 2020 adjusted cash flow of €6.7 billion was able to finance our capex, with a surplus of €1.7 billion. Net borrowings (before IFRS 16) are at the same level as at the end of 2019, and leverage is at around 30%”.