“Uncertainty reigns. Globalisation, the technological revolution and the 2008 recession changed the rules of society.” Snam CEO Marco Alverà has worked in energy for 20 years. This Philosophy and Economics graduate from Venice who studied in New York, Milan and London has created a new corporate-development model. “Today’s challenges are not just to a company’s core business, they demand a different development, inclusion and sustainability model. With faith in the ‘élites’ rapidly eroding worldwide, companies must earn their ‘licence to operate’ in communities every day.” Alverà does not believe in separate environmental and social crises but in a single challenge in need of a new approach. “We’re not just a global leader building complex gas infrastructures; we guarantee safe and sustainable energy supplies; we heat millions of European homes; we create eco-friendly development opportunities; and we work for the good of all our stakeholders including local communities.” Just over a year ago Alverà launched the Snam Foundation to create development opportunities.
He recently replicated this on a personal level giving rise, with his brother Giorgio and cousins, to the Fondazione Kenta, named after his grandmother, writer, art historian and women’s rights activist Kenta Alverà. “It promotes and studies the links between ethics, technology, arts and scientific research in the Fabbrica Sassetti, an ex-industrial plant in the Isola district of Milan.” The Fondazione Kenta launches its cultural programme in Milan Design Week 2019 hosting Alcova which invites international designers to show their projects. “Participating in these activities will be free to further artistic and civil growth, and give the city an inspirational space, a home for all.”
Marco Alverà After graduating in Philosophy and Economics from the London School of Economics, Marco Alverà embarked on a professional career with Goldman Sachs in London before working for 18 years in Italy’s leading energy companies. Since 2016 he has been the CEO of Snam, Europe’s leading gas utility.