Italy’s Snam, Leonardo partner for innovation, safety in hydrogen sector.
Leonardo and Snam have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop their respective technological expertise to support innovation and sustainability in the energy industry. The partnership will specifically focus on digitalisation, monitoring, physical and cyber security of processes, networks and infrastructures in order to increase their resilience and operational efficiency. The agreement is centred on developing the hydrogen economy, which will play a key role in achieving Europe’s decarbonisation targets.
“The agreement falls within the scope of our technological and market development roadmaps identified in the Be Tomorrow – Leonardo 2030 strategic plan, set out on long-term sustainable growth, which also envisages the development of advanced systems to monitor and defend critical infrastructures, as well as the development of aerospace systems linked to the ecological transition”, Alessandro Profumo, CEO of Leonardo said.
“Making key industry sectors sustainable and protecting critical infrastructure”, Marco Alverà, CEO of Snam commented “are priority challenges for the future of our communities. This is the starting point for our partnership with Leonardo, bringing together the skills and innovative capacity of two excellent Italian companies to develop technologies aimed at strengthening the security of energy networks, optimising their management and decarbonising the aerospace sector through hydrogen”.
The partnership between Leonardo, the only Italian company dedicated to overseeing strategic technologies for the security of the countries in which it operates, and Snam, one of the world’s leading energy infrastructure companies, will mainly focus on the cyber security of strategic infrastructures, IoT (Internet of Things) technologies and advanced sensors for monitoring energy networks and introducing hydrogen into the aerospace sector.
Large networks have recently experienced a rapid digital transformation of their physical assets. The Leonardo and Snam partnership will explore the possibilities offered by the most innovative technologies for increasing the operational efficiency and resilience of industrial plants. The areas of collaboration range from Industry 4.0 – with applications for the digitalised management of infrastructures and industrial processes based on IT, OT, IoT (Internet of Things), artificial intelligence and machine learning, big data, blockchain, advanced analytics and digital twin – to infrastructure security, using situational awareness solutions, mission critical communication technologies and advanced sensors, and the use of drones and satellites for asset monitoring. In cyber security, the partnership will relate to threat analysis, monitoring, identification and response to cyber-attacks.
The three-year agreement envisages that the joint solutions may also be applied to other international players in the large energy networks sector. If necessary, the agreement will be subject to subsequent binding agreements defined by the parties in accordance with the applicable regulatory framework, including related parties transactions.
Leonardo, a global high-technology company, is one of the world’s major players in Aerospace, Defence and Security and Italy’s main industrial company. Organised into five business divisions, Leonardo has a significant industrial presence in Italy, the United Kingdom, Poland and the USA, where it also operates through subsidiaries such as Leonardo DRS (defence electronics), and joint ventures and partnerships: ATR, MBDA, Telespazio, Thales Alenia Space and Avio. Leonardo competes in the most important international markets by leveraging its areas of technological and product leadership (Helicopters, Aircraft, Aerostructures, Electronics, Cyber Security and Space). Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (LDO), in 2020 Leonardo reported consolidated revenues of €13.4 billion and invested €1.6 billion in Research and Development. The company has been part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) since 2010 and has been confirmed as an industry leader in the Aerospace & Defence sector for the second year in a row in 2020.
Snam is one of the world’s leading energy infrastructure companies and ranks among Italy’s largest listed companies, by market capitalisation. In addition to Italy, it operates through subsidiaries in Albania (AGSCo), Austria (TAG, GCA), the United Arab Emirates (ADNOC Gas Pipelines), France (Teréga), Greece (DESFA) and the United Kingdom (Interconnector UK), and has also started operations in China and India. Number one in Europe in terms of the size of its transport network (over 41,000 km, including international activities) and natural gas storage capacity (about 20 billion cubic metres, including international activities), Snam is also one of the main continental regasification operators. In its 2020-2024 strategic plan, Snam plans an increase in investments to 7.4 billion euros and more focus on the energy transition businesses: biomethane, energy efficiency, sustainable mobility and hydrogen. Snam also operates in forestation and has set itself the goal of achieving carbon neutrality (Scope 1 and Scope 2) by 2040.
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Italy’s Snam, Leonardo partner for innovation, safety in hydrogen sector, July 8, 2021
