Business Context and Reporting Period
This Form 6-K filing by Eni S.p.A. covers the period ending February 27, 2025. It reports the completion of the 2024 treasury share buyback program, the approval of the third tranche of the 2024 dividend, the unaudited consolidated results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024, and the presentation of the 2025-2028 Capital Markets Update and strategic plan.
Key Financial Metrics (Full Year 2024)
- Proforma Adjusted EBIT: €14.3 billion (down 20% vs. 2023), beating guidance by €1.7 billion.
- Adjusted Net Profit (attributable to shareholders): €5.3 billion (down 37% vs. 2023).
- Net Profit (IFRS): €2.6 billion (down 45% vs. 2023).
- Adjusted Cash Flow from Operations: €13.6 billion (down 18% vs. 2023).
- Organic Capital Expenditure: €8.8 billion (down 4% vs. 2023).
- Free Cash Flow: Approximately €5.0 billion.
- Net Borrowings (ex-IFRS 16): €12.2 billion.
- Proforma Leverage: 15% (historically low, down from 22% reported leverage).
- Shareholder Returns: €5.1 billion total (€3.1 billion in dividends and €2.0 billion in share buybacks).
Material Changes vs. Prior Period
- Production Growth: Full-year hydrocarbon production increased 3% to 1.71 million boe/d, driven by organic growth in Côte d'Ivoire, Congo, and Mozambique, and the integration of Neptune Energy.
- Segment Performance:
- E&P: Proforma adjusted EBIT down 4% to €13.0 billion due to lower realized prices, offset by production growth.
- Global Gas & LNG (GGP) & Power: Proforma adjusted EBIT down 65% to €1.3 billion, impacted by a favorable arbitration outcome in 2023 and a less favorable trading environment.
- Refining & Chemicals: Reported a proforma adjusted loss of €0.7 billion (vs. €46 million profit in 2023) due to weak crack spreads and structural headwinds in the European chemical sector.
- Enilive & Plenitude: Combined proforma adjusted EBIT down 9% to €1.1 billion, though Plenitude grew EBIT by 17%.
- Portfolio Actions: Completed the sale of Alaska assets to Hilcorp and Nigerian assets, and finalized the Neptune Energy acquisition.
- Dividend: Approved a third tranche of €0.25 per share (total 2024 dividend €1.00/share), payable March 26, 2025.
Guidance, Outlook, and Strategic Highlights
- 2025-2028 Plan: Eni projects Cash Flow From Operations (CFFO) per share to grow at a 14% CAGR through 2028. Return on Average Capital Employed (ROACE) is expected to improve by ~6 percentage points to ~13% by 2030.
- Financial Framework: Average leverage expected to be 16% over the plan (down 5 percentage points from previous guidance). Gross capex expected below €9 billion in 2025.
- Shareholder Payout: Target payout ratio raised to 35-40% of CFFO (from 30-35%).
- 2025 Dividend: Proposed at €1.05/share (up 5%).
- 2025 Buyback: Initial program of €1.5 billion, with upside potential to €3.5 billion.
- Strategic Developments:
- Satellites: Launched a new CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage) satellite. Agreed to increase KKR's stake in Enilive to 30%.
- Indonesia-Malaysia JV: Signed an MoU with PETRONAS to create a joint venture for upstream assets, targeting 500,000 boe/d production.
- Data Centers: Identified as a significant new business opportunity leveraging HPC6 supercomputing and gas-fired power.
- Versalis Transformation: Restructuring plan aims for EBIT break-even by 2027 and €900 million adjusted EBIT by 2028.
Investor Verification Checklist
- Verify the impact of the new organizational structure (re-segmentation) on historical comparability of E&P and GGP results.
- Confirm the timeline and regulatory approval for the new Indonesia-Malaysia joint venture with PETRONAS.
- Monitor the execution of the Versalis restructuring plan and the timeline for achieving EBIT break-even in 2027.
- Track the progress of the €1.5 billion 2025 share buyback program and potential upside to €3.5 billion.
- Assess the sensitivity of the 2025-2028 CFFO guidance to Brent oil price fluctuations, given the target cash neutrality of under $40/bbl.