The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a loan of up to €264 million to Snam to support the construction of new infrastructure dedicated to integrating biomethane production plants into Italy’s national gas transmission system.
The signing of the first tranche of €140 million was announced yesterday (28 July) in the presence of EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti and Snam CEO Agostino Scornajenchi.
The project involves building 240 kilometres of new pipelines designed to connect biomethane facilities to the gas network, enabling the transmission of up to 12,000 GWh of renewable energy annually, which corresponds to approximately 1.13 billion cubic metres of biomethane.
This capacity supports Italy’s target of producing five billion cubic metres of biomethane per year by 2030, as outlined in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
The investment also aligns with the objectives of the EU’s REPowerEU plan, which seeks to enhance energy security through diversification and increase the share of low-carbon renewables in the energy mix.
The funding supports the EIB’s broader commitment to financing sustainable development initiatives consistent with the Paris Climate Agreement and the EU taxonomy.
EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti highlighted that the loan underscores the Bank’s role in bolstering energy security and advancing the green transition in Italy. She emphasised that the financing will help reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels and promote strategic autonomy at both national and European levels.
Snam CEO Agostino Scornajenchi noted that biomethane represents a strategic complement to natural gas in securing Italy’s energy supply, underscoring the importance of flexible and efficient gas infrastructure that supports source diversification and system competitiveness.
The EIB is the EU’s long-term lending institution, owned by member states and committed to financing projects that contribute to EU policy goals including climate neutrality.
Over the past five years, the EIB Group has provided more than €58 billion to projects in Italy, with half of its annual financing directed towards climate change mitigation and cohesion regions with lower per capita incomes.
Snam is a leading European gas infrastructure operator, managing a network exceeding 40,000 km across Italy and abroad; it holds one-sixth of the EU’s gas storage capacity and ranks as the third largest regasification operator in Europe. The company is committed to achieving full carbon neutrality by 2040 and net zero emissions for its entire value chain by 2050.
EIB and Snam agree €264 million financing to integrate biomethane into Italy’s gas network
