Our activities in Ravenna

The CO₂ capture and storage project

Following the example of similar activities already underway or planned in Northern Europe, Eni (Operator) and Snam are developing the Ravenna CCS project and start the CO₂ injection activities related to Phase 1 of Ravenna CCS, the first project for the capture, transport and permanent storage of CO₂ in Italy carried out for environmental purposes only, to contribute to the decarbonisation of industrial sectors.

Phase 1 envisages to capture, transport, and store 25 thousand tonnes of CO₂ per year from Eni's natural gas treatment plant in Casalborsetti, Ravenna. Once captured, the carbon dioxide is transported through pipelines—previously used for natural gas and now repurposed—to the Porto Corsini Mare Ovest offshore platform. There, it is injected into the depleted gas field at a depth of about 3,000 meters. 

The plant captures over 90% of the CO₂ from the power plant’s emissions, which have a concentration of less than 3% and are at atmospheric pressure. These are among the most challenging conditions industrially, showcasing the high efficiency of the capture system developed in Ravenna.

With the subsequent launch of Phase 2, the Ravenna project is set to become the CCS reference hub for Southern Europe and the Mediterranean. It will play a significant role in combating climate change and offer a practical solution to maintain the competitiveness of Italian industries. By preserving existing jobs and creating new ones through the project's supply chain, Ravenna CCS supports both economic and environmental goals. Additionally, it will be crucial in decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors, which is essential for meeting climate and carbon neutrality targets by 2050.

Thanks to the admission of the Callisto integrated Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project to the European list of Projects of Common Interest (PCI Projects), the Ravenna CO₂ storage hub will play a key role in the creation of a high-tech international supply chain in the decarbonization sector. 

Furthermore, due to its potential, Ravenna CCS is participating in HERCCULES, an international research project that aims to accelerate the deployment of CO₂ capture, storage and reuse in Mediterranean Europe.

Natural gas production

Ravenna is part of the Northern Central District (DICS), dedicated to the almost exclusive production of natural gas from offshore platforms. The gas also feeds the Eni Power power plant that supplies energy to the industrial complex and mainly to the distribution network. In Emilia-Romagna, production activity has coexisted for decades with tourism, fishing and aquaculture, thanks to a monitoring and environmental protection system that is considered as a model worldwide. While gas extraction continues from active fields, decommissioned facilities are gradually being dismantled according to ministerial initiatives. A first batch of offshore structures will rolled out from 2023-2024. As part of decommissioning, we are also pursuing circular economy initiatives involving the reconversion of an old offshore platform into an artificial ecosystem suitable for colonisation by marine organisms, with the aim of creating a marine science park that will be supported by national research organisations.

Ponticelle: enhancement and revitalisation of the area

In Ravenna, through Eni Rewind, we are also involved in the rehabilitation of brownfield sites. Our flagship initiative is the Ponticelle project, which will transform the decommissioned site outside the plant into a sustainable hub. It will involve building a platform for the bio-recovery of Eni Rewind soil and a multi-functional waste pre-treatment platform managed by HEA (a company jointly owned by Eni Rewind and Herambiente), as well as a photovoltaic plant with a capacity of 6 MW that has already been installed by Plenitude. The plant is made up of over 10,000 state-of-the-art monocrystalline silicon photovoltaic panels and will generate an amount of energy equivalent to the consumption of over 3,000 households.

Refining and circular chemistry

We are also present in Ravenna with Versalis, particularly in the production of elastomers: these are elastic materials that are an essential element when it comes to making tyres, but also for technical items and even some types of paper. In this area, we are specialising in high-performance, low-energy products, bringing together the knowledge of the Versalis Research Centre in Ravenna and the expertise of the technical departments at large tyre companies such as Bridgestone.

An additional line of research involves the production of elastomers from recycling tyres through a process that was granted the Eni Award and used to produce the Versalis Revive® ESBR range.
Also in Ravenna, chemistry is integrated into the refining process for the production of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distributed for mobility purposes. In a wider context through a logistics system in the area, the Ravenna plants are integrated with those of our other production sites in the Po Valley chemical quadrilateral: Venice, Ferrara and Mantua.