INTESA SANPAOLO: INFRASTRUCTURE, ENERGY AND INNOVATION TO BOOST THE COMPETITIVENESS OF THE UK, EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST
- Intesa Sanpaolo’s IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division convened a dialogue in London among institutions, companies and investors on growth opportunities related to the United Kingdom’s new 10-year infrastructure plan
- Mauro Micillo, Chief of the IMI CIB Division at Intesa Sanpaolo: “We are playing a catalytic role in supporting investments alongside institutions, corporates, funds and investors to support the key projects of the United Kingdom’s new 10-year infrastructure plan, working together to create synergies and business opportunities with the goal of enhancing competitiveness and promoting sustainable development”
- With a consolidated presence in the UK for over a century, IMI CIB has supported various strategic transactions totaling around €11 billion since 2023
- Financing for corporate clients and financial institutions in the UK & MEA Region totaling approximately €8.5 billion
London, 15 July 2025 – The role of infrastructure, the energy transition and innovation as key drivers of competitiveness for the United Kingdom and Europe was the focus of the conference “Infrastructure and Growth Opportunities for Europe and the UK: Focus on the UK Infrastructure Strategy”, held in London and organized by Intesa Sanpaolo’s IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division.
The event brought together institutional representatives, business leaders, financial sector representatives and academics to examine the United Kingdom’s newly launched 10-year infrastructure plan (2025–2035), discuss associated opportunities, and explore initiatives to attract investment across countries.
Mauro Micillo, Chief of the IMI CIB Division at Intesa Sanpaolo, stated:
“We strongly believe that a constructive public-private dialogue is key to accelerating projects that strengthen the competitiveness of the United Kingdom and Europe. Financing sustainable infrastructure, while supporting the so-called twin transition (green and digital), will continue to be a strategic pillar of the IMI CIB Division’s strategy. We bring a distinctive ability to mobilise market capital for the real economy, backed by deep technical expertise in advisory and in project and public financing. In 2024 alone, global project finance volumes surpassed €300 billion, with transactions involving our Division representing around €45 billion - nearly 15% of the global total. We are playing a catalytic role in supporting investments, working closely with institutions, corporates, funds and investors to support the key projects of the United Kingdom’s new 10-year infrastructure plan, creating synergies and business opportunities with the goal of enhancing competitiveness and promoting sustainable development.”
Strategic Transactions Backing the Transition and Innovation
Since 2023, the IMI CIB Division has been involved in several strategic international transactions originating in the United Kingdom, involving global partners and investors, with a total value of approximately €11 billion. Strengthening its role in strategic projects, the Division has supported initiatives in infrastructure, energy, telecommunications and digital transition - including the Liverpool Bay CO₂ Transport and Storage (T&S) project, the completion of the acquisition of National Grid Transmission by Macquarie AM, and renewable energy and energy efficiency operations alongside TRIG and SEEIT.
These initiatives confirm the Intesa Sanpaolo Group’s ongoing commitment - under the leadership of CEO Carlo Messina - to enabling sustainable and digital transformation, in line with the Group’s 2022–2025 Business Plan.
London event on Infrastructure and Growth Strategies
The UK Government’s newly approved 10-year Infrastructure Strategy outlines £725 billion (over €846 billion) in investments to stimulate economic development, modernise public services and accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy. With a strong focus on social value, the plan aims to address long-term challenges, drive economic growth, attract global talent, adopt cutting-edge technologies and enhance global competitiveness.
The strategy is built on three pillars: infrastructure works, energy transition, and the enhancement of social and environmental systems — with a focus on urban mobility, housing, renewables, healthcare and education.
In response to the plan’s approval, the IMI CIB Division gathered corporate clients, infrastructure funds and institutional investors from Italy, the United Kingdom and the Middle East to analyse the opportunities presented by the plan. The event highlighted the growing importance of public-private partnerships and offered perspectives on how to support sustainable growth in Europe and the United Kingdom.
Opening remarks were delivered by Mauro Micillo, followed by keynote speeches from John Edwards (Director and COO, Office for Investment, UK Government), Enrico Letta (former Italian Prime Minister), and Alan Morrison (Intesa Sanpaolo Professor of Business, Ethics and Finance, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford).
A panel discussion featured leaders from IKIGAI Capital, ENI UK, Masdar, Macquarie AM, Ofgem, SSE Renewables, and the IMI CIB Division.
A longstanding presence in the United Kingdom
The IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division’s London branch, which became a subsidiary in 1981, is one of the Group’s key international hubs. It is the main hub for the UK & MEA Region, which also includes operations in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Istanbul. The volume of financing to corporate clients and financial institutions amounted to approximately €8.5 billion (data as of 31/12/2024). In the Region, approximately 310 professionals manage commercial relationships with over 600 groups - including large multinationals active in infrastructure, energy, telecommunications, and real estate; key financial sponsors; sovereign wealth funds; and institutional investors - as well as approximately 400 local branches of major Italian and international corporate groups.
Trade between the United Kingdom, the European Union and the Middle East
The United Kingdom, the European Union and the Middle East share long-standing trade relationships, with further potential for development in the near future. Together, these three regions account for over 30% of global GDP[1].
United Kingdom – European Union
- The European Union remains a key trade partner for the United Kingdom: in 2024, UK exports of goods and services to the EU reached £358 billion (41% of total UK exports), while imports from the EU amounted to £454 billion (51% of total UK imports). In real terms, UK services exports to the EU in 2024 were 19% higher than in 2019[2].
United Kingdom – Middle East
- Trade between the United Kingdom and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)[3] amounts to approximately £59 billion per year, making the GCC the United Kingdom’s seventh-largest export market. Individual Gulf states are pursuing specific partnerships with the UK, and sovereign wealth funds from Gulf countries - including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates - rank among the largest foreign investors in the United Kingdom[4].
European Union – Middle East
- The European Union is the Gulf Cooperation Council’s second-largest trading partner, representing 11.7% of the GCC’s total goods trade with the world in 2024, equivalent to €161.7 billion[5].
Media Relations
Intesa Sanpaolo
Corporate & Investment Banking and Governance Areas
stampa@intesasanpaolo.com
[1] Oxford Economics Database. EU (~$28 trillion), UK ($3.6 trillion), and Middle East ($3.6 trillion) at current prices, together representing approximately 32% of global GDP ($110.5 trillion).
[2] UK Parliament, Statistics on UK–EU trade, April 2025.
[3] The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Last updated 15 July 2025 at 17:12
