Italy's Snam seeking to shift gas hub away from UK to S Europe

London

THE centre of gravity in Europe's natural gas market is heading south as one of the continent's biggest pipeline operators builds a system that could make Italy an exporter of the fuel for the first time.

Fortified with new supplies due from a US$5.6 billion pipeline link to the Caspian Sea as well as tankers full of gas in its liquid form, Snam SpA and its chief executive officer Marco Alvera are seeking to place Italy at the crossroads of Europe's gas trade.

If successful, Alvera's efforts would accelerate the gas market's shift away from the UK and towards the Netherlands and southern Europe. Those areas are absorbing more gas coming from Russia and the south, making up for declining production in Britain's part of the North Sea. Snam's network would become more important if Mr Alvera can manage to bring in enough new flows to turn Italy …