Claudio Descalzi is CEO of the Italian energy giant Eni. As Russia’s assault on Ukraine roils European energy markets, companies like his are hustling to keep up with demand. Descalzi says the war (along with Covid) exposed how inelastic the demand for energy is: consumers and heavy industry need fuel whether there’s a war (or pandemic) on or not. Getting it to them while simultaneously exploring more sustainable resources is the challenge facing huge suppliers like his.
Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi on the High-Stakes Race to Meet Energy Demand without Russian Gas
War and pandemic have not reduced the demand for energy.
January 13, 2023
Summary.
What does it mean exactly to be an oil and gas company that’s committed to a net-zero carbon future? HBR Editor Adi Ignatius sat down with Claudio Descalzi, CEO of the Italian energy giant Eni, to find out. Descalzi has committed to being net zero by 2050. That’s well into the future, but in the meantime the company expects to decrease oil and gas production from a peak level in just a couple of years. Those are serious commitments. Yet the company is still primarily in the business of extracting, producing, and acquiring oil and gas. It can seem like an inconsistent approach. Descalzi doesn’t think so, and he explained why in this episode of The New World of Work.