ROME : (Reuters) Claudio Descalzi, the CEO of the Italian oil and gas firm Eni (ENI.MI), has said that he does not anticipate any “big shocks” in the energy markets this year.
Descalzi said in an interview with La Stampa newspaper that “European gas storages are full and, although the global economy has resumed, demand is not at its highest because China has not yet resumed full operations.”
Most importantly, he continued, “in these months we have been able to diversify supplies, removing dependencies that are dangerous for the stability of supplies and prices.”
He said that because to supply of liquefied natural gas from the United States and new agreements with many African nations, imports of Russian gas had almost completely disappeared.
Italy relied on Russia for 40% of its gas supplies before to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Eni said on Friday that while lower oil and gas prices in the first quarter of 2022 caused its first-quarter net profit to decline 11% year over year, its earnings nevertheless surpassed forecasts.