Enel could win 5 billion euros of EU investment funding, CEO tells paper

MILAN (Reuters) -Italian power utility Enel could secure up to 5 billion euros ($5.4 billion) for investment from REPower EU energy funds in addition to 3.5 billion euros in EU recovery funds already won, its CEO was quoted as saying on Friday.

In an interview with Il Sole 24 Ore daily, Francesco Starace said Enel could invest 3-5 billion euros of REPower EU money on renewable energy projects and to boost resilience of energy grids if the deadline to spend the funds could be extended to 2030 from 2027.

If the 2027 deadline remains unchanged, Enel could spend 2-4 billion euros, he added.

With reference to suggestions that Italy might struggle to spend its allotted EU post-COVID Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) funds, Starace said money could be reallocated under the REPower EU programme for investment in storage capacity.

"If you increase the percentage of renewables, you might need more batteries than originally planned and so there might be a dedicated chapter in the REPower EU (funds)", he said.

($1 = 0.9227 euros)

(Reporting by Federico MaccioniEditing by David Goodman)