Eni’s big bet on a recovery

The Italian major faces a number of headwinds, but its upstream focus should leave it primed to capitalise on any oil-price revival

A year ago Eni’s chief executive, Claudio Descalzi, talked of oil prices jumping to $200 a barrel within the next decade if Opec failed to cut production. At today’s prices of around $30/b that may seem far off. But it chimes with Eni’s corporate strategy, which leans heavily on exploration and production. Given considerable recent successes in the field, the company is increasingly well-placed to take advantage of any price rebound. That’s not to say everything is going Eni’s way. Its flagship Coral floating liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique, based on 0.811bn barrels of oil equivalent (boe), has reportedly been delayed, although Eni would not confirm this. The first 2.5m tonnes-a-