Eni Lifts Buyback to $3.87B on Record Output, Southeast Asia Bet
Italian major doubles shareholder returns as production surges 11% and capital shifts away from the Middle East.
Eni raised its 2026 share buyback program by 20% to EUR 3.4 billion ($3.87 billion) on Wednesday (2026-07-29), after second-quarter adjusted net profit more than doubled to $2.65 billion.5,4 The new buyback amount represents more than double the initial EUR 1.5 billion guidance, the company said.5
That signals management sees the current production cycle as durable. Total oil and gas output averaged 1.79 million boe/d in April-June, up 7% year-on-year. Underlying growth reached 11% after stripping out portfolio shifts and price effects.4 Project ramp-ups in Norway, Congo and Mexico, plus new start-ups in Angola and a higher contribution from the Searah joint venture in Indonesia and Malaysia, drove the increase.4
Gas sales rose 19% versus the same quarter last year to 10.75 Bcm. European volumes increased 17% to 4.19 Bcm.5 The exploration and production division posted pro forma adjusted EBIT up 97% from Q2 2025, buoyed by volume gains, cost discipline and a realized liquids price of $96.50 per barrel.4 That price was up 54% from a year earlier.4
Net profit for the quarter hit EUR 3.32 billion, a 511% jump.5 Pro forma gearing sat at the low end of the company's 10-15% target range. Eni returned EUR 1.35 billion to shareholders in the period.5
But the buyback hike is not just a function of higher oil prices. CEO Claudio Descalzi told an Italian parliamentary committee on July 16 that prolonged Strait of Hormuz disruptions are driving Big Oil to shift capital into Southeast Asia and Latin America.3 The company is actively reshaping its portfolio toward those regions.
Southeast Asia is seeing a wave of final investment decisions for natural gas extraction, with regional output potentially rising roughly 18%.3 Eni has locked in LNG offtake from its Indonesian Kutei Basin projects, targeting 20 MTPA of contracted supply by 2030. Those developments, due online in 2028, could add up to 2 Bcf/d of gas and 90,000 bpd of condensate.1
The Searah venture with Petronas, a 50:50 joint venture combining assets across Indonesia and Malaysia, targets more than 500,000 boe/d within three years.2 Eni also recently confirmed a discovery in the Ganal block with an estimated 5 Tcf of gas and 300 million barrels of condensate.1
The company now expects roughly 5% underlying production growth for full-year 2026, up from prior guidance.4 Few European majors have matched that trajectory in recent quarters.
The contrarian risk is that supply growth from these new hubs eventually weighs on the pricing that funded the buyback. Brent crude front-month traded at $90.15/bbl on Wednesday (2026-07-29), but the bearish signal flags added supply as a potential drag. [LIVE PRICES] For now, Eni is betting the ramp-up in Angola and Indonesia can keep pace without forcing a rethink on the $3.87 billion pledge.5