Eni, the Italian energy company, and PASQAL, a leader in neutral atoms quantum computing, have announced the establishment of a collaboration to develop next-generation HPC (high-performance computing) solutions for the energy sector through quantum computing.

Quantum computing is a rapidly-emerging technology that harnesses the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems which are too complex for classical computers.

Quantum technology application to the energy sector is an innovative tool that could further accelerate the energy transition.

Through its full-stack approach, PASQAL is developing unique and proprietary quantum algorithms to enhance existing HPC workflows for a broad range of energy applications currently being researched by Eni along all its value chain (Upstream, Downstream, Chemicals and Renewables).

Eni invests in digital technologies to increase the efficiency of its operations, enable the creation of new business and support the net reduction of GHG emissions, with the goal of offering fully decarbonised products and services by 2050. Eni operates one of the mostpowerful privately-owned supercomputers in the world, hosted in Eni’s Green Data Centre in Ferrera Erbognone (Italy), one of the most sustainable and energy-efficient data centres globally, and the company is applying computational methods to a great variety of different applications, such as numerical simulation of basins and reservoirs, magnetic fusion and renewable energies, among many others. The utilization of PASQAL’s proprietary algorithms will allow Eni to accelerate these and other fields of research and unlock new capabilities.

“Digital and High-Performance Computing is the driver to make us faster, more efficient and more responsible. Our HPC system is a vital tool to explore the energy of the future,” said Dario Pagani, Eni’s Head of Digital & High-Performance Computing “PASQAL’s quantum computers will allow us to complement our conventional HPC workflows in areas such as optimization and machine learning and accelerate our research to create new solutions to the most pressing issues in the energy industry.”

This R&D collaboration builds on Eni’s 2021 series A investment in PASQAL through Eni Next, the Eni’s corporate venture capital vehicle, dedicated to investing in high-growth start-ups to boost the energy transition to a zero-carbon future.

PASQAL is using this funding to manufacture its current 100-qubit commercial quantum computer and develop its next-generation systems. “Our collaboration with Eni will drive the energy industry’s most critical research forward,” said Georges-Olivier Reymond, CEO of PASQAL. “We’re honoured to be selected by Eni, a world energy leader, to leverage quantum computing to address a wide range of challenges in the energy transition. We look forward to working with Eni to explore new applications and define new use cases for our transformative technology.”