Italian energy company Eni announced on Friday that it intends to speed up its share buyback programme following a smaller-than-anticipated Q2 net profit decline in 2024. 

The programme for 2024 started in May to purchase €1.6bn worth of shares by April 2025.  

As of 19 July 2024, approximately 21 million shares have been bought, amounting to a cash expenditure of €300m.  

Due to the “better-than-expected” progress in Eni’s asset sales, the company is looking to speed up the process beyond the original plan. 

In Q2 2024, Eni recorded EBIT of €4.1bn and an adjusted net profit of €1.5bn. Additionally, Eni said in a press release that the company’s adjusted cash flow before working capital was €3.9bn, which it said demonstrated strong underlying performance.  

Eni’s oil and gas production increased by 6% compared with the previous year due to the continuous growth at projects in Cote d’Ivoire and Congo Floating LNG, greater input from Libya and the complete integration of Neptune. 

Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said: “We are upgrading our upstream portfolio, having recently announced the divestment of our non-core assets in Alaska, the ongoing completion of the sale of onshore Nigeria, and agreed to a combination with Ithaca Energy for our UK assets.”  

Enilive and Plenitude, two businesses in transition and owned by Eni, have competitive advantages that lead to high growth and value, and the company has reported significant achievements, Eni said.  

The energy company stated that Enilive generated €120m in revenue, driven by strong marketing performance and increased biorefinery throughputs, partially offset by reduced biofuel margins. 

In Q2 2024, Plenitude reported proforma-adjusted EBIT of €150m, representing a 12% increase due to improved retail performance and the expansion of renewable installed capacity and related production volumes.