• The Italian Chamber of Commerce for Spain (CCIS) and the Spanish Confederation of Business Organisations (CEOE) organised the award ceremony for this prize, that recognises the trajectory of these successful entrepreneurs from Spain and Italy
• The award ceremony took place in Madrid, at the headquarters of the Italian Embassy and was attended by numerous institutional representatives and representatives of the economic and business worlds of both countries
• The organisers of the Prize wanted to recognise the professional career of the two businessmen and their contribution to the consolidation of trade relations between the two countries
• Antonio Llardén: "It is a fact that Spanish-Italian collaboration is effective, precisely on a key issue for Europe such as energy. Spain and Italy are collaborating and contributing to the creation of a genuine, better connected, Europe of energy, through projects such as the TAP pipeline”
• Marco Alverà: "Spain and Italy, also thanks to the collaboration between Enagás and Snam, play an increasingly strategic role in the integration of markets and in the energy transition in Europe and the Mediterranean for the benefit of citizens and businesses”
Antonio Llardén, Executive President of Enagás, and Marco Alverà, CEO of Snam, this afternoon received the Tiepolo Prize 2019, which, since 1996, has been recognising the work of successful businessmen in Spain and Italy and their contribution to stronger economic and trade relations between the two countries.
The ceremony for this prestigious award, presented jointly by the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Spain (CCIS) and the Spanish Confederation of Business Organisations (CEOE), under the auspices of the Italian Embassy, was held in Madrid, at the Amboage Palace, the headquarters of the diplomatic representation of the Italian Republic in the presence of numerous institutional representatives and representatives of the economic and business world of both countries. In particular, the event was attended by the Italian ambassador, Stefano Sannino, the Secretary of State for Energy, José Domínguez Abascal, the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida and the Presidents of the CCIS and the CEOE, Marco Pizzi and Antonio Garamendi.
The journalist and member of the Tiepolo Prize organising committee, Josto Maffeo, was the host for the opening of the 23rd edition of the award ceremony. He highlighted the successful careers of the joint winners and their decisive contribution to the development of economic relations between Spain and Italy and to the global dissemination of a highly competitive image of the productive systems of both countries.
Antonio Llardén is the driving force behind the gas infrastructure that Spain needs to guarantee its energy supply, as well as the initiation of the internationalisation of Enagás.
Antonio Llardén Carratalá (Barcelona, 1951) has served as the Executive Chairman of Enagás since 2007. The company has 50 years of experience in the construction and operation of energy infrastructures, and as a TSO is at the vanguard of efficiency in Europe.
Trained as an industrial engineer at the Technical College of Industrial Engineers at Barcelona’s Polytechnic University of Catalonia, he has extensive experience in the business world. Throughout his career, he has held various positions of high responsibility in the infrastructure and energy sectors, including that as chairman of the gas company Sedigas and a member of the Eurogas Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the International Gas Union (IGU).
"It is an honour for Enagás, and for me personally, to receive this Tiepolo Prize for the integration and promotion of relations between Spain and Italy", said Llardén in his speech. During his time as chairman, Enagás has invested more than 5 billion euros in Spain to develop the gas infrastructure network necessary to guarantee supply security and in the back-up of renewables in the energy transition process. The company has also started an internationalisation process and currently operates in the USA, Mexico, Chile and Peru in different energy infrastructures.
Enagás is also participating with Snam and other European partners in the 878-km long Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project, which will link Turkey to Italy via Greece and Albania. In addition, it is part of the consortium which owns 66% of the Greek gas operator DESFA.
"It is a fact that Spanish-Italian collaboration is effective, precisely on a key issue for Europe such as energy. Spain and Italy are collaborating and contributing to the creation of a genuine, better connected, Europe of energy, through projects such as the TAP pipeline”, said Llardén. He also emphasised the excellent relations with Italian companies: "with Snam we have been collaborating for some time on issues of fundamental importance for the energy transition, such as the development of green hydrogen projects and other technologies linked to decarbonisation." To this end, Enagás has promoted innovative projects such as the world's first LNG-powered passenger train or the European CORE LNGas HIVE project for the decarbonisation of maritime transport. In addition, the company has created the subsidiary EnaGasRenovable to promote and develop non-electrical renewable energy projects. It was recognised as the world leader in its sector in sustainability for the fourth consecutive year in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
Currently, Llardén is the Chairman of the Foundation for Energy and Environmental Sustainability (Funseam); he is also a member of the Executive Commission and Board of Directors of the Spanish Energy Club, of the CEOE Business Action Council, and of the Business Leadership Forum. In 2017, he was named a Knight of the Legion of Honour in France, the highest award granted by the French nation for distinguished merit in the service of the country.
Marco Alverà, architect of the international consolidation and positioning of Snam as a leader in energy transition at European level.
Marco Alverà (New York, 1975) has been CEO of Snam, one of Europe’s leading energy companies, since 2016.
With a degree in Economics and Philosophy from the London School of Economics, Alverà has worked for almost 20 years in Italy’s most prominent energy companies, dealing with natural gas, electricity and oil. After starting his career at Goldman Sachs in London, he worked at Enel and Wind. In 2005, he joined Eni, where he held managerial positions during his almost 11 years at the Company.
"I am proud to receive this award, which consolidates the collaboration between our two companies and countries, and which I consider an award for the daily work and dedication of all the people of Snam", said Alverà during his speech.
Under Alverà’s leadership, Snam has established itself as a leader of the energy transition in Europe, as it was the first company to begin experimenting with hydrogen immission in the gas transport network. Similarly, the Snamtec project has given life to new businesses in sustainable mobility, biomethane infrastructure and energy efficiency. In addition, in recent years, Snam has consolidated its international presence through important strategic operations, including the acquisition of Gas Connect in Austria and its winning bid for 66% of the Greek operator DESFA in consortium with three other major European companies, including Enagás. Both companies are also shareholding partners in the TAP pipeline.
“Spain and Italy, also thanks to the collaboration between Enagás and Snam, play an increasingly strategic role in the integration of markets and in the energy transition in Europe and the Mediterranean for the benefit of citizens and businesses”, stated Alverà. "With the acquisition of Desfa, our two companies have laid the foundations for the development of Greece as an energy hub for the Eastern Mediterranean and for the further consolidation of the Southern Corridor.
In recent months, Snam became the only Italian company to join the international Zero Coalition for the decarbonisation of maritime transport, and has signed an agreement with the Israel Innovation Authority to develop green economy technologies. "Together with Enagás, we are leading European players in the development of renewable gases such as biomethane and hydrogen, which are fundamental in the decarbonisation process", said Snam's CEO.
Alverà is also the chairman of GasNaturally, a partnership of six associations representing the European gas sector. He is an independent director of S&P Global, a member of the General Board of the Giorgio Cini Foundation in Venice, and a Visiting Fellow at Oxford University. He is also the author of the book Generation H, published by Mondadori, on the prospect of hydrogen as a clean energy vector for the future.
Winners in previous years
In previous years, the Tiepolo Prize has been awarded to: Antonio Hernández Callejas (Ebro Foods), Luigi Lana (Reale Group), Antonio Huertas (Mapfre), Urbano Cairo (RCS Mediagroup), Francisco Reynés (Abertis and Cellnex Telecom), Francesco Monti (Esprinet), Juan Rosell (CEOE), Alfredo Altavilla (FCA), Emeritus King Juan Carlos (special award to celebrate the Centenary of the CCIS), Juan Miguel Villar Mir (OHL), Pietro Salini (Salini Impregilo), Borja Prado (Endesa), Alberto Bombassei (Brembo), Antonio Vázquez (Iberia), Gilberto Benetton (Autogrill), Enrique Cerezo (Atlético Madrid), Massimo Moratti (Inter Milan), César Allerta (Telefónica), Fulvio Conti (Enel), José Manuel Lara Bosch (Antena 3), Paolo Vasile (Tele 5), José Manuel Martínez (Grupo Mapfre), Antoine Bernheim (Generali), Jesús Salazar (Grupo SOS), Francesco Morelli (Istituto Europeo di Design), Rodrigo Rato (International Monetary Fund), Mario Monti (Università Bocconi), Florentino Pérez (Real Madrid), Luca Cordero di Montezemolo (Ferrari), Alfonso Cortina (Repsol YPF), Vittorio Mincato (ENI), Gabriele Bugio (NH Hoteles), José Vilarasau (La Caixa), Pier Luigi Fabrizi (Monte dei Paschi di Siena), Marco Tronchetti Provera (Pirelli), Rodolfo Martín Villa (Endesa), Luciano Benetton (Edizione Holding), Luis Alberto Salazar-Simpson (Auna), Giovanni Agnelli (Fiat), José Ángel Sánchez Asiaín (Fundación BBVA), Luis Ángel Rojo (Bank of Spain), Antonio Fazio (Bank of Italy), José María Cuevas (CEOE), Giorgio Fossa (Confindustria), Isidoro Álvarez (El Corte Inglés) and Cesare Romiti (Fiat).
