April 02, 2026 [Yahoo Finance]- Eni has signed a €500m ($579.4m) loan agreement for 15 years with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to convert part of the Sannazzaro de’ Burgondi refinery in Pavia, Italy into a biorefinery.

The project includes the conversion of the refinery’s hydrocracker (HDC2) unit through Ecofining technology and the construction of a pre-treatment plant for waste feedstocks, including used cooking oils, animal fats, and waste from the agri-food industry.

These materials form the main feedstock used by Enilive, Eni’s mobility-focused business, to produce hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) biofuels.

In February, Eni approved the final investment decision (FID) for converting parts of its Sannazzaro de’ Burgondi refinery into a biorefinery.

The Sannazzaro facility is set to begin producing HVO diesel biofuels and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from 2028, with annual capacity of about 550,000 tonnes.

The project will use existing utilities and infrastructure at the site while adding HVO diesel and SAF production alongside conventional fuels.

The Sannazzaro deal marks the second biorefining financing agreement between the EIB and Eni, following a separate €500m deal signed in July 2025 for the conversion of the Livorno refinery.

EIB vice president Gelsomina Vigliotti said: “This financing represents strategic support for a project with high environmental and industrial value, contributing to the decarbonisation of the transport sector, particularly aviation.

“Through this initiative, the EIB aims to strengthen Europe’s capacity to produce advanced fuels and to promote the circular and sustainable use of resources.”

The Sannazzaro conversion forms part of Enilive’s plan to raise biofuel production capacity to five million tonnes (mt) by 2030, including more than 2mt of SAF capacity.

Enilive currently produces biofuels at biorefineries in Venice and Gela, and at the St Bernard Renewables biorefinery in Louisiana, US, a joint venture where it has a 50% interest.

In 2026, a third Italian biorefinery is due to open in Livorno, with additional plants under construction in Malaysia and South Korea set to follow.

Eni and Q8 also plan to develop a fourth biorefinery in Italy, in Priolo, Sicily, by 2028.

Pure HVO can be used in approved engines and is available at more than 1,600 Enilive service stations across Europe.

Demand for SAF is expected to increase from 2030 as blending mandates under the ReFuelEU Aviation Regulation take effect.

Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said: “This new agreement with the EIB demonstrates the effectiveness and robustness of the strategy we pursue through our businesses related to the energy transition. To deliver a tangible transition towards energy solutions that have an increasingly low environmental impact, it is essential to create businesses that can grow and generate value.

“We achieve this by combining technology and the ability to deliver industrial-scale projects on the one hand, with a broad and growing customer base on the other. We see biorefining and biofuels as a fundamental component to support the progressive decarbonisation of transport – applicable across all segments of the sector, and already well aligned with existing demand.”