Italian energy major Eni SpA has held talks with Mercuria Energy Group over a potential partnership in commodity trading, according to people familiar with the matter.
The talks follow a period of bumper profitability for the energy trading industry, as major producers look to increase margins on oil and gas sales.
Spokespeople for Eni and Mercuria declined to comment. The negotiations are still ongoing and a partnership agreement may not be finalized, according to the people, who asked not to be named to discuss private information.
It wouldn’t be the only trading partnership under discussion in the industry. Bloomberg reported last year that Indian Oil Corp. was planning to form a trading joint venture and had held talks with Vitol Group about it. Meanwhile, Mercuria itself has a metals partnership with the Democratic Republic of Congo’s state miner Gecamines.
Geneva-headquartered Mercuria is one of a group of major energy trading houses that made record profits as oil, gas and power markets fractured following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The company has paid out $5.5 billion in dividends over the last three years to shareholders, with the largest recipients being former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. traders Marco Dunand and Daniel Jaeggi. Profits totaled $1.31 billion in its last financial year through September, according to accounts seen by Bloomberg News.
Eni has a sizable trading operation around its portfolio of gas, liquefied gas, oil and power producing assets. London is a key hub for the trading unit, which also has regional desks in Singapore and Houston.
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