Eni uses solar to power oil and gas fields in Pakistan and Tunisia

Italian oil and gas firm Eni is building solar power plants to power operations in Tunisia and Pakistan.

The energy company said a 10 MW solar plant is being built at the Bhit Gas Field 180 km north of Karachi in the Kirthar region of Pakistan, where its Eni New Energy Pakistan unit holds a 40% stake in the field. Eni added, a 5 MW solar facility is being constructed by its Tunisian subsidiary, Eni Tunisia BV, at the Adam oil concession, in which it has a 25% stake.

The latter project is being developed with Tunisian state-owned oil company Entreprise Tunisienne d’Activités Pétrolières, and is scheduled for completion this year.

Eni said the project in Pakistan will be finalized in October and will enable the closure of one of the gas turbines while reducing operational costs.

Part of the plan

Three weeks earlier, Eni had begun work on a 31 MW solar project in Italy, at the Porto Torres industrial site in Sassari, Sardinia. Around 70% of the energy produced by the plant will be used by companies at the industrial site, Eni said. In July, the company started construction of another solar plant in Italy, the 26 MW project at its industrial site in Assemini, near Cagliari, also in Sardinia.

Both Italian projects are part of Eni’s strategic plan for 2018-2021, which includes a 220 MW solar project pipeline at facilities across Italy. In April, Eni had identified 25 industrial sites that could potentially host PV power plants.

Eni entered the renewable energy business in 2015 with the creation of an Energy Solutions department. Since then, the company has sought to expand its solar business in Algeria and Ghana, where it has oil and gas operations.