Giorgia Meloni’s government, which has placed several of its loyalists at the head of public companies, is facing an unprecedented rebellion by some of Enel’s shareholders against its candidate for the position of chairman of the Italian energy giant. The general meeting of shareholders, meeting on Wednesday in Rome, is called to vote on three lists of candidates, including that of the Ministry of the Economy, which holds 23.6% of Enel.
The Italian government is supporting the candidacy of Paolo Scaroni, president of the AC Milan soccer club, who is close to Silvio Berlusconi and was CEO of Enel from 2002 to 2005, to become chairman of the board of directors. The controversial figure has often been criticized for his close ties to Moscow that he forged during his tenure as CEO of Italian hydrocarbon group Eni, which ended in 2014. In September 2022, Mr. Scaroni, 76, had denounced “the escalation of sanctions” against Russia decided by the West in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine by Moscow’s troops.
The shareholders’ rebellion is led by the investment fund Covalis Capital, which is proposing Italian banker Marco Mazzucchelli as chairman to counter the influence of the ultra-conservative government within Enel. Zach Mecelis, founder of Covalis, which owns about 1% of Enel, denounced the “opacity of the process” of choosing the government’s candidates and said he was presenting a list that “better reflects the international DNA of the company.
Also on the government’s list is Flavio Cattaneo, 59, executive vice president of the private rail operator Italo-NTV, who would be called upon to replace Francesco Starace, CEO of Enel since 2014 and whose third term is expiring. Under Mr. Starace’s leadership, Enel was one of the first energy companies to embrace sustainability, a commitment that has not been high on the agenda of the Meloni government. Mr. Starace said he would be willing to facilitate the transition to the new leadership, but said he would not be available for another three-year term.
Glass Lewis, one of the major U.S. shareholder advisory firms, supports the third list, the one presented by Assogestioni, a group of Italian institutional investors, but prefers Mr. Mazzucchelli as chairman. Glass Lewis felt that the outcome of the vote was uncertain and that Mr. Mazzucchelli would be better able to preserve the independence of the board and balance the presence of the government’s chosen CEO.
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, which owns 2.2% of Enel, is also defending Mr. Mazzucchelli’s candidacy. The world’s largest fund told the Financial Times on Friday that it “supports the candidates put forward by minority shareholders in order to strengthen the independence of the board of directors”.
