CLEAN ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE BIOMASS MANAGEMENT
An infrastructure supported by private capital and European partnerships to produce biomethane, reduce emissions and create value from livestock waste as part of the national energy transition.
The Retina project aims to transform an environmental criticality into a resource for the community.
It was created to build an infrastructure platform in line with European and national strategies on energy transition and the reduction of climate-changing emissions, intervening in areas with high livestock density, where the concentration of cattle and buffalo farms generates both economic value and environmental pressures.
The system is based on anaerobic and aerobic digestion plants, powered by over 60% livestock biomass and the remainder by agricultural by-products not derived from dedicated crops.
The plants will produce biomethane to be fed into the national grid, biogenic CO₂ for food and pharmaceutical uses, and organic fertilisers to replace chemical fertilisers, while improving the physical quality of the soil.
A SHARED DATA AND KNOWLEDGE INFRASTRUCTURE
Retina also acts as an information infrastructure, capable of collecting, certifying and sharing strategic data on energy, the environment and the agricultural supply chain. A transparent knowledge base that enables systemic rather than fragmented interventions. The project is fully in line with the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) and European decarbonisation policies.
The GSE, the implementing body, is responsible for verifying and certifying the sustainability of the plants and access to incentives.
FINANCIAL STRUCTURE AND INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS
Promoted by the Actarus Investments group through its subsidiary Actarus Renewables, Retina has been operational since 2022.
Actarus Renewables, as General Partner and Management Company of the Luxembourg-based European Retina SCA Fund, raised capital from Italian institutional investors and family offices for the design and development phase.
In 2025, a strategic partnership was formed with the French group EREN, which brought the available equity capital to approximately €100 million.
At the same time, Retina Holding S.r.l. finalised a €250 million project financing agreement with a pool of European banks (BNP Paribas, BPER, ING, Intesa Sanpaolo, Société Générale and UniCredit), assisted by SACE, which issued the Archimede Guarantee.
The funds will finance the first phase of the plan, with the construction of eleven plants – four in Lazio and six in Campania – on which work began in October 2024 and which are expected to be operational by the first half of 2026.
THE SECOND PHASE AND THE CONTRIBUTION TO THE ENERGY TRANSITION
In September 2025, a new agreement was reached for the second phase, with over £250 million in own funds and a capital increase for Retina Holding Seconda S.r.l., which will coordinate the construction of eleven more plants in the regions of Lazio, Campania, Molise and Puglia.
The structure remains unchanged: Biomethane Asset Holdings S.p.A. (EREN Group) and Retina SCA.
The second project financing is currently being finalised, with the involvement of SACE and the selection of a new banking pool.
In the meantime, an EPC contract has been signed with Techbau S.p.A., already involved in the first phase, for the construction of the new plants. All of them will be connected to the national methane network, contributing to energy security and reducing imports.
PNRR incentives will only be granted after commissioning and certification of biomass sustainability and traceability by the GSE.
Entirely backed by private capital, Retina represents a virtuous model of industrial finance and environmental sustainability, capable of combining innovation, the circular economy and a concrete contribution to the country's ecological transition.
Source: Download article Il Sole 24 Ore
