ENI (NYSE:E) reported higher third-quarter earnings and cash flow, lifted full-year production and cash flow guidance, and increased shareholder distributions as upstream growth, gas optimization and strong biofuel margins supported results.
Chief Transition and Financial Officer Francesco Gattei said the company’s strategy of expanding upstream production while building transition-related businesses was generating growth and reducing balance-sheet risk. ENI reported net income of €2.8 billion, up 20% from the prior quarter and more than double the year-earlier level, despite lower oil prices.
Production growth and exploration results
ENI said upstream production increased 4.2% in the third quarter, while exploration discoveries during 2026 exceeded 1.2 billion barrels of resources. The company cited an 80% technical success rate and a 70% commercial success rate, with discovery costs below $1 per barrel.
Gattei raised the company’s full-year underlying production-growth outlook to 6% to 7%. Growth is expected to come from Congo, Libya, Côte d’Ivoire, Mexico, Ghana and the Searah business combination in Indonesia and Malaysia, partially offsetting operational challenges in the Middle East and constraints on exports from Kazakhstan.
The company said projects sanctioned during 2026 are expected to deliver about 600,000 barrels per day of new production by 2030. That figure does not include the proposed Junín 5 development in Venezuela, according to Guido Brusco, ENI’s chief operating officer of natural resources.
ENI also highlighted final investment decisions for Baleine Phase 3 in Côte d’Ivoire, Kutai North and Gendalo in Indonesia, Cronos in Cyprus and Greater PAJ in Angola. The company said agreements and opportunities identified or implemented during the year added approximately 4.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent of equity resources.
Venezuela and Argentina projects
In Venezuela, ENI signed a new 25-year contractual framework for the Junín 5 field in early September and submitted development plans to authorities. Subject to approval, the company intends to move to a final investment decision on the first phase before year-end. That phase is expected to add 200,000 gross barrels per day within 18 to 24 months.
Brusco said a subsequent stage could lift production to 400,000 barrels per day by the end of 2029, while the field’s potential could reach 1 million barrels per day around 2032 or 2033. He noted that Junín 5 contains heavy oil and will require substantial volumes of diluent, but ENI expects to use condensate from the Perla gas field and lighter oil from the Corocoro asset to support development.
ENI is initially expected to use existing spare capacity in Venezuela, which Brusco said should keep capital intensity low at the beginning of the project. Gattei said phased development and timely farm-downs would be central to managing capital requirements and risk.
At Perla, ENI has submitted a development plan that includes debottlenecking the current onshore facility to supply an additional 90 million standard cubic feet per day to Venezuela’s domestic market. A second phase would involve a floating LNG project of roughly 3.4 million to 3.5 million tonnes per year. Brusco said the LNG phase would take about three and a half years to start production after a final investment decision.
In Argentina, ENI has applied for approval under the RIGI investment framework for its planned project and is targeting financing of 65% to 70%. Brusco said the company has identified contractors and completed technical, commercial and supply-chain work. Gattei said both upstream and midstream activities, including LNG-related infrastructure, would be consolidated through special-purpose vehicles.
Transition businesses and industrial operations
ENI’s exploration and production division generated pro forma EBIT of €4.6 billion. Its gas and LNG business reported €400 million of pro forma EBIT, supported by gas and LNG optimization, while the company increased its full-year gas and LNG EBIT outlook to about €1.5 billion.
Enilive and Plenitude together reported €700 million of pro forma EBIT in the quarter. Enilive benefited from favorable biorefining margins, while Plenitude faced competitive pressure in retail energy markets.
Gattei said Plenitude’s revised EBITDA guidance of €1.2 billion, down from €1.3 billion, reflected aggressive customer-acquisition policies among retail competitors and higher-than-expected summer power demand that required the company to purchase additional electricity on the spot market. He said ENI expects improvement and pointed to Plenitude’s strengthened financial position following additional capital investment.
Enilive Chief Executive Stefano Ballista said biofuel market fundamentals remained constructive, citing deployment of Europe’s Renewable Energy Directive and U.S. policy developments. He said Enilive’s Italian retail sales growth reflected market-share gains, pricing strategy and a reduction in lower-margin wholesale exposure.
ENI’s refining operations improved utilization after major turnaround activity was completed, allowing the business to capture stronger market conditions. Versalis, the company’s chemicals business, remained affected by weak demand, higher utility costs and European competitiveness challenges, although Chief Executive Adriano Alfani said its underlying performance remained on track toward a break-even target in 2028.
Balance sheet and shareholder returns
Capital expenditure in the quarter was €1.35 billion, and ENI reiterated annual capital-expenditure guidance of €7 billion. Reported gearing fell to 10%, at the bottom of the company’s 10% to 15% target range, while pro forma gearing was 9%, both record lows for the company.
The company raised its 2026 share-buyback program to €3.8 billion from €3.4 billion, or 2.5 times its original guidance. It also declared an exceptional dividend of €1.3 billion, with an ex-dividend date of Dec. 7. ENI said total cash dividends for the year will reach €4.4 billion, its highest annual level, while total payout including buybacks will be €8.2 billion, equal to 50% of expected operating cash flow.
Gattei said ENI does not assume it will move to a net-cash position, though that could occur depending on market conditions. He said the company would review its distribution policy alongside its 2027 plan and would seek to share upside from stronger-than-expected execution with shareholders.
About ENI (NYSE:E)
Eni S.p.A. is an integrated energy company headquartered in Rome, Italy. Founded in 1953, the company operates across the energy value chain, with activities spanning exploration and production, natural gas, liquefied natural gas, refining, chemicals, and energy-related services.
Eni explores for and produces oil and natural gas in several regions, including Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the Americas. Through its downstream businesses, the company processes and markets fuels, develops chemical products, and supplies natural gas and electricity.
