Italian energy company Eni announced today that it has signed an exclusivity agreement with BlackRock’s infrastructure-focused unit Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) for the potential sale of a co-control stake of 49.99% of Eni’s Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) business, Eni CCUS Holding.

Eni CCUS Holding encompasses several large-scale European CCUS projects, including the UK-based Hynet, aimed at capturing CO2 emitted by industrial plants in the North West of England and North Wales for permanent storage in depleted gas fields in the Irish Sea, and with a potential capacity of up to 10 million tonnes per year by 2030, and the UK’s Bacton, also targeting 10 million tonnes annually by 2030, as well as the 5 million tonne oer year L10 project in the Netherlands.

Hynet was among the sites selected as part of the UK government’s £21.7 billion investment program last year for the development of new “carbon capture clusters” in the UK.

Eni CCUS Holding also has the future right to acquire the Ravenna project in Italy, a CCUS joint venture between Eni and Snam, anticipated to store up to 4 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030.

According to Eni, the agreement follows a selection process involving several prominent international players who expressed strong interest in the company, and under the final agreement under negotiation, GIP will support investments in the CCUS projects. Eni also stated that in the medium to long-term, additional prospects could be added to build a wide platform of CCUS projects.

BlackRock acquired GIP in 2024 for $12.5 billion, citing emerging long-term opportunities in areas including decarbonization, energy security, digital infrastructure, and supply chain transitions.

Eni added that the agreement forms part of its “satellite model,” aimed at attracting capital from partners to fund growth and highlight the value creation of its new businesses, while preserving free cash flow from traditional businesses for shareholder distribution. Under the strategy, Eni has recently entered into negotiations with Ares for the sale of a $2.2 billion stake in Eni’s renewables, retail and EV charging company Plenitude, and the company also sold a 25% stake in its mobility transformation and biofuels-focused business Enilive in 2024 to KKR.