Snam: leader in Europe and major player in the energy transition

Snam is Europe’s leading gas utility. Founded in 1941 as “Società Nazionale Metanodotti”, it has been building and managing sustainable and technologically advanced infrastructure guaranteeing energy security for over 75 years. Snam operates in Italy and, through subsidiaries, Austria (TAG and GCA), France (Teréga) and the United Kingdom (Interconnector UK). It is one of the main shareholders of TAP (Trans Adriatic Pipeline) and is the company most involved in projects for the creation of the Energy Union.

First in Europe by transport network size (over 32 500 km in Italy, about 40 000 with international subsidiaries) and natural gas storage capacity (16.7 billion cubic meters in Italy, about 20 billion with international subsidiaries), Snam manages the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant built in Italy and is a shareholder of the country’s main terminal.

Leveraging Snam’s infrastructure, Italy is today one of the most interconnected and diversified countries in the global gas market. It has five entry points for pipeline imports from Russia, Algeria, Libya, the Netherlands and Norway, and three LNG terminals. In March 2018, through Snam’s investments in the so-called reverse flow, Italy exported gas to Switzerland for the first time in history, strengthening its position as a European gas hub.

As from 2020, Italy will also be physically connected to the Southern Gas Corridor that will cross six countries for more than 3500 km bringing gas from Azerbaijan, and potentially also from other production areas in the Eastern Mediterranean, to Europe. Connecting with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) at the Greek-Turkish border, TAP will cross Northern Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea before coming ashore in Southern Italy.

Snam also aims to boost g-mobility – in the forms of compressed natural gas (CNG), LNG and biomethane – as a cleaner and more efficient alternative to traditional fuels through the newly-launched company Snam4Mobility.

In June 2017, the first plant producing renewable gas (i.e. biomethane from organic waste) was connected to the Italian network. Snam is part of the Gas for Climate group consisting of seven leading European gas transport companies and two renewable gas industry associations, committed to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in the EU by 2050. In 2018 Snam has expanded into energy efficiency, acquiring a controlling stake in TEP Energy Solution, a leading energy service company in Italy.

The Snam Global Solutions business unit leverages over 75 years of experience to offer consulting services to the international midstream market, strengthening Snam’s brand worldwide and exporting Italian engineering excellence.