Italy, like many other EU countries, is navigating stormy waters to secure its energy supply. In recent years, several geopolitical events have disrupted the energetic supply chains including: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent sanctioning of Russian gas supplies by the EU and Houthi attacks on Western shipping during the Gaza war. In addition, the EU set very ambitious targets to reduce emissions and transition to renewable energies—goals that are incorporated by the Italian National Energy Strategy.¹ Italy is committed to this path, but it must find global partners to address supply challenges. The GCC plays a pivotal role.

Italy faces a critical situation for several reasons: First, it is highly reliant on gas as a source of energy and domestic production is insufficient to meet demand. According to 2022 data, Italy consumed 60 billion cubic meters, while the production was stuck at 3 billion meters—just 5% of total consumption.² As a result, Italy depends on gas imports and, until 3 years ago, its main supplier was Russia, which provided for more than 40% of the gas consumed in Italy in 2021. Russian gas fell to less than 5% in the first months of 2024.³ Consequently, Italy and the national energy companies have negotiated long-term agreements for gas supplies with other countries; among them is Qatar, with its massive LNG production capacity.

Qatar is a main LNG producer, together with Russia, the US, and Australia. The UAE is planning to expand its annual production of gas by 85% before 2030, boosting output from 77 million annual tonnes to 142.⁴ In 2023, the Italian state-owned company ENI signed a 27-year agreement with QatarEnergy LNG NFE, a joint venture between ENI and QatarEnergy, to supply 1.5 billion cubic meters of liquefied gas per year that will be treated in the new Piombino regasification plant.⁵ The agreement will see a deepening of collaboration between the two countries in energy. In the first half of 2024, Italy imported 44% of LNG from Qatar—the highest in the EU.⁶

The GCC goes beyond the supply of hydrocarbons for Italian energy security, and Rome sets targets for the reduction of CO2 emissions and for the transition to renewable energies consistently with the EU requirements. On the Green New Deal, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has adopted a more moderate stance compared to her predecessors, calling for a ‘balanced energetic mix,’ but the goal remains unchanged. In this context, collaboration with strategic partners is fundamental. A key element in the green transition is hydrogen, and once again, the GCC countries play a crucial role. The collaboration between Italian and GCC companies in this predates the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In 2021, UAE-based Mubadala and the Italian SNAM signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen collaboration on hydrogen production.⁷ The role of the UAE is central when it comes to hydrogen, and it is planning to enlarge its production capacity by several million tonnes annually. Energy cooperation between Abu Dhabi and Rome was also reaffirmed by another MoU between ENI and ADNOC in 2023, signed in the presence of Prime Minister Meloni and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.⁸ Cooperation goes beyond the borders of the two countries. On 15 January 2025, Italy, Albania, and the UAE signed a Trilateral Agreement for the production of renewable energy in the Balkans.⁹ Technological skills will be provided by the National Energy Company of the Emirates, while the Italian Terna will manage the infrastructure for energy distribution.

Abu Dhabi is not Italy’s only strategic partner on renewable energies. Riyadh is also expected to play a pivotal role in the Italian energetic transition and in the supply of hydrogen. This was underscored by the 10 billion euro in agreements signed during the visit of Meloni to Saudi Arabia in January 2025—ranging from defense to industrial investments. Notably, the partnership between SNAM and ACWA Power on supplying green hydrogen through the South2 Corridor, connecting the Arab Peninsula to Central Europe, highlights the growing significance of Saudi Arabia in Italy’s strategy.

These examples demonstrate how Italy is looking for strategic energy partners in the context of global instability; and it seems to have found them among the GCC states. Cooperation between Rome and the GCC countries also presents challenges. Huge infrastructural investments will be required, especially in transit countries that may be involved in regional conflicts. Then, trade routes in the region may be disrupted by any number of challenges from nefarious actors such as pirates and terrorists to environmental and technical issues. Nevertheless, recent years have shown that this cooperation is based on a solid political basis and business activity from both sides, so we expect to see an increasing role of the Gulf countries in Italy’s energy policies.