MILAN: Shares in gas grid operator Snam and other Italian energy stocks rose on Wednesday after a report in financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore said a court had ruled a special tax currently imposed on the sector was unconstitutional.
The government takes in around 1 billion euros ($1.13 billion) a year from the so-called Robin tax, which has been levied since 2008 on extra profits of Italian oil, renewable energy and power firms, the paper said in a report, citing unidentified government sources.
"If confirmed, a rethinking (by the government) on the Robin tax would be positive for all the companies in the sector," Simona Pedrazzini, an analyst at Italian bank ICBPI, said in a note.
The court's ruling is expected to be published on Wednesday.
A scrapping of the tax could lift earnings per share of Italian utilities by around 5 percent and by up to 10 percent for Snam and Terna, according to another Italian broker, which asked not to be named.
Snam and Terna own a large part of the gas and power networks in Italy.
The companies would not be able to get back the money they paid in the past, the paper added.
At 0930 GMT, shares in Snam were up 3.3 percent, while those in grid operator Terna were up 4.15 percent, making the two firms the leading gainers on Milan's blue-chip index , which was up 0.2 percent.
Utility Enel was also trading 1.3 percent higher.
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