Italy should end this winter with its gas storage facilities fuller than last year, grid operator Snam said on Tuesday, in a sign that the country has been successful in tackling the energy crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine. Snam, which manages the bulk of country's stock through its Stogit unit, said its storage was 84% full at the end of last year, higher than the 68% threshold reached at the end of 2021.

"This is a very positive result, made possible not only by favourable weather conditions and the national plan to contain consumption, but determined and supported by the actions implemented by Snam to optimise flow management," the state-controlled group said. Snam said that there were 9.3 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas in its storage as of the end of December, 2.6 bcm more than at the same point in 2021.