After graduating in law with full marks from the University of Siena in 1971, he earned a master’s degree in the economics of hydrocarbons from the Enrico Mattei School for Advanced Studies in Hydrocarbons.
He began his career in 1973 at Eni, where he subsequently held a number of managerial positions before becoming in 1992 the head of planning and control at Saipem. Then, at the parent company, he became first (in 1996) the deputy head of strategic control and upstream development and gas and later (in 1998) the deputy head of planning and industrial control. Subsequently he held the office of deputy chairman of Snamprogetti (from 2001 to 2002) and chief executive officer for the commercial activities of AgipPetroli (2002). Following the absorption of the latter company by the parent company, at the beginning of 2003 he was appointed deputy chief operating officer for marketing in the Refining & Marketing Division. From 2004 to 2007 he was the chief operating officer of Eni, with responsibility for the Refining and Marketing Division. Until September 2007, he was director of Galp (a Portuguese oil company), deputy chairman of Unione Petrolifera (association of the oil companies operating in Italy), director of Eni Foundation and chairman of Eni Trading & Shipping, while from 2007 to 2009 he was the chief executive officer and chief operating officer of Syndial, an Eni company operating in the chemical and environmental fields.
In 2009 he left Eni to work as a consultant in the oil industry and was appointed distinguished associate of Energy Market Consultants, a London-based oil consultancy, in 2010.
He has been a Director of Enel since May 2011.
