Decoding the news: Eni and Petronas will merge their upstream operations in Malaysia and Indonesia, creating a regional player with ambitions of market leadership. The announcement came last week during Eni’s Q2 2025 earnings call, during which CEO Claudio Descalzi described the deal as “one of the best we’ve made in recent times.”
- The framework agreement signed in June builds on the memorandum of understanding reached in February and foresees an even 50:50 split between the two parties.
- Financial due diligence and business plan development are currently underway. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2025.
What Descalzi says. “This is a transformative project in terms of scale and potential,” and as such, “it will be accretive for Eni overall.”
- “Our satellite Upstream model is proving to be a powerful tool for building critical mass and unlocking new strategic options, while generating substantial additional cash flow—Var, Azule and Ithaca are clear examples.”
- “Our merger with Petronas replicates this model and will be the largest ever undertaken, creating a leading regional player in a highly dynamic area, with outstanding growth prospects and a significant increase in gas demand on the horizon.”
Why it matters: The partnership strengthens Eni’s strategic positioning in Southeast Asia’s high-growth markets, particularly in the gas sector.
- The goal is to establish a self-financing operator capable of responding to accelerating energy demand in the region.
What’s next? Eni’s new strategic plan, scheduled for February 2026, will unveil further details on financial returns, dividends, and production targets.
