Good morning, everyone. It's with great emotion that I welcome you all to what promises to be an historic day for Italgas Group. Today, we are setting a bold new horizon, one that will drive our sector evolution towards ever more advanced services on the path to net zero, while providing the country with a powerful boost in innovation, growth, and sustainability. We pursue this goal with the strength of a vision that has steadily taken root over the years, supported by the sound decision that have turned into reality. Today, we are crossing a new frontier with the same pioneeristic spirit that has distinguished us in the last 187 years.
This is far from being mere rhetoric, as you will have clear evidence after you have the chance to examine the plan in this scenario that Paolo and Gianfranco are about to present you. After all, there cannot be room for rhetoric in a company like Italgas, which since its foundation, has always prioritized action over words, results over announcement, and true developments over baseless ambitions. The spirit of service is in our DNA, driving our contribution to the development of communities, a commitment we began demonstrating a full quarter of century in advance Italy's unification. Our true strength is the capability of constant evolution, continually reinventing ourselves while remaining true to our core values.
Before turning to the important updates, then Paolo and Gianfranco, that I, I pray to come on the stage, will share in the 2024, 2030 strategic plan, let me once again express my pride in being part of this Italian excellence, which has now been recognized as an international benchmark. A company I have had the honor of calling ours for several years, and we shall soon showcase in a video that highlights the group evolution into a one-of-a-kind Network T ech Company on the global stage. Thank you all.
So here we are. Good morning to those connected from far away. Good afternoon to those in Europe, and thank you for joining us today. I'm joined here by Paolo Gallo, our CEO, Gianfranco Amoroso, our CFO. They will run through the presentation today, as you all have seen, and it was introduced by our president today. And, the second question, as usual, has got the usual formalities, so compliance slide, please read it, and I'll now leave the floor to our CEO, Mr. Paolo Gallo.
Welcome to everybody, and good afternoon, and morning for the connection from U.S.. It's a truly pleasure to be here. As you have seen, we have organized this meeting at the last moment. We could not disclose before to anyone what we are going to tell you today, before. And it is an historical milestone for us, for the Italgas history, because as you know, and it's going to be the first subject of the presentation, 2i Rete Gas, their shareholders, has accepted our offer of acquiring 2i Rete Gas. With that move, we are going to create the European champion in the gas distribution industry, and even more important, we are going to create an incredible value for our shareholder, but also for all stakeholders that belongs to the gas industry.
It is evident that with the 2i Rete Gas, we will further consolidate the Italian gas distribution market. We will show you, in a moment, synergies that are coming from that combination. But we will also talk about digitization, as we have talked already for many years, but even more important, about artificial intelligence and the application that, starting from today, we can apply to our system. The plan that we are going to present today is not one plus one plan, but it's a fully integrated one. During the summer, in parallel with the due diligence that you carried out on 2i Rete Gas, we started to develop the fully integrated plan, and the results are the one that we are going to present today.
Let me, let me move to the acquisition, and then let me disclose something that has been already in our press release this morning, but I will give you more flavor to some of the data regarding the acquisition. The total equity value has been set to EUR 2.06 billion, and if we add the net financial position, the enterprise value is EUR 5.3 billion. If we forecast 2025 as the closing date, the premium of the RAB is going to be around 4%. That is clearly below Italgas' current market valuation and recent M&A transaction. And in fact, we expect to close the deal in the first semester of 2025, pending the antitrust and the Golden Power and the customer approvals.
If you look about the financing of the deal, we have already secured the short-term cash need. You know that we have already signed EUR 2.2 billion of bridge financing, already committed and syndicated by a pool of banks. This amount will be refinanced through a market transaction, similar, and EUR 1 billion of rights issue, for which a standby underwriting agreement has been already signed for the full amount. The capital increase is a clear objective. We want to keep and maintaining the same credit rating, and the one billion increase will let us keeping the same credit rating.
Regarding another aspect, an important aspect for our shareholder about this transaction, if we compare the result of this plan with the previous one, the EPS accretion starts already in 2026, and it will go up to 15% up in 2029. So we have compared the result of last year plan with the result of this year plan. How we are going to reach this level, that is extraordinary, is because we are going to have synergies amounting EUR 200 million in 2030. That includes saving, include operational efficiency, and include the implementation of artificial intelligence in the combined group.
On top of this, there are another EUR 80 million that are additional revenues from the increased investment that we have identified in order to bring 2i Rete Gas at the same level of digitization that we have in Italgas. The board of directors has approved not only the plan, but has also approved a new dividend policy that confirms the 65% payout ratio, but increase the floor from 4%- 5%, and moving the reference from 2022 dividend paid to 2023 dividend paid. Before going on, let me just remind you some numbers of 2i Rete Gas. On the left side, you see the recorded numbers... and on the right side, you see the shareholder structure. 2i Rete Gas recorded more than EUR 0.5 billion of EBITDA in 2023.
They are operating a network that, in terms of lengths, is very similar to the Italgas one, different from a number of users. After, at the closing, we will acquire 100% of the company. Let me spend few words, probably more than few words, about the pillar and the rationale for this transaction. The acquisition of 2i Rete Gas is a truly transformational deal, not only for Italgas itself, but for the entire industry, because, with that, we are going to create the European champion in the gas distribution. On top of the fact that we are already, as Italgas, the European champion in terms of innovation, digital transformation, industrial expertise. Combining the two organizations, we are building a result that is not only the sum of the parts, it's much greater than the sum of the parts.
And for this reason, we are extremely confident about creating value for our shareholders and for the stakeholders of the industry. With that, we feel that is an incredible occasion to accelerate investment in the gas distribution, but even more important, to bring the same level of innovation throughout the entire Italian network. The second element that is also important is that we are creating a player across Europe that can face the big challenges in terms of energy transition that the European Union has set, setting objective that are extremely ambitious. We strongly believe that a fully digitized, smart, and flexible network is the only way in order that we can achieve those goal.
And finally, the combination of the two groups will create incredible opportunity in term of value creation, in term of innovation, in term of synergies, benefiting our shareholder first and all stakeholder in our industry. Let me go a little bit more in detail point, point by point. First one, we are creating the European champion. If you look at the number of re-delivery point, we will become the first player in Europe. It is evident, but to me, it's even more evident, the fact that we are the only player that can address the energy transition throughout Europe, thanks to the innovation, the expertise, and the digital transformation that we have implemented in Italgas. If you, if you recall the history of our industry, we have several time discussed with all of you about the fragmentation of the market.
Still, it's an industry that is composed of more around 200 operators, and to me, this fragmentation is a clear obstacle for, for example, for the level and the quality of the investment being different from one operator to the other. Now, with that acquisition, there is a clear opportunity to step up investment, bringing all the network at the same level, if we talk about asset digitization and the use of the network for green gases dispatch. On the right side, I try to list the activities in terms of M& As that either ourselves and 2i Rete Gas have tried since 2012, when the new legislative framework has been put in place in order to consolidate the market. Because I would like to remind you that in 12 years, only nine tenders have been awarded.
So either ourself, 2i Rete Gas, and the other have tried to acquire the some other operator in order to consolidate, but I think this is the most and the foremost larger one. Let me now move into the second pillar, the famous energy trilemma. We have discussed this trilemma several times, and I think now the trilemma has become the true question for the future. Not only energy transition, but also security of supply, and even more important, cost of the energy. Why only recently? Because I think before, it was clear that the energy transition was addressed through an ideological position, and to me, the ideological position will never solve the trilemma, will never bring us even close to the net zero target set by the European Union. Only balanced solution, only an approach that is technological neutral, will help us to reach this target.
Gas infrastructure and the fact that they can decarbonize the molecule as well as we should decarbonize the electrons. Gas infrastructure will play a significant role in the energy transition. But in order to do that, we need to have a big player across Europe. Player that are able to leverage financing capability, engineering capability, construction capability, industrial expertise, let me say more in general. If we move to the last rationale, that is our shareholder, that are our shareholder and our stakeholder, I have to address the point of the value creation. Our history, Italgas history, in the last seven years, we have proven to the market our ability to reduce cost.
If we take a look at the 2016, that has been the last year in which Italgas was part of the Snam Group, we have been able to reduce the OpEx by 40% in seven years. That correspond to around 15%, 2016, EBITDA. I think we are in front of a, another wave, similar to what we have faced during the last seven years. It is evident that the combination of the group will unlock significant synergies. Let me say the traditional one: cost saving, procurement, streamlining of cost and processes, sharing of best practice. But even more important, digitization and artificial intelligence will make the difference, will create the majority of our synergies. These two element will sum for the EUR 200 million that I mentioned before.
That is equal to 12% of an EBITDA in 2023 of the two combined entity, so very similar to what we were able to achieve in the previous wave from 2016 until now, but there is more than that. There is not only this 100, there is another one that is the fact that the level of digitization of 2i Rete Gas network is not at the same level that we are. Why? Because we have been the unique DSO that has implemented in so extensive way the digital transformation. There's no one else, nor in Europe, nor in U.S., nor in other parts of the world. If you take a look at the numbers, you will understand that 2i Rete Gas has a similar network length of Italgas, but many more equipment throughout the network.
The reason is very simple, it's very clear also. They are operating in areas that are less populated than the ones of Italgas. We have an incredible opportunity to create the largest and the most advanced network in gas distribution in Europe, overcoming the current technological difference created by the fragmentation of the market. As you can see, we have identified clear steps in how to proceed to achieve this goal. Digitization of the network is the first step. Integration of the 2i Rete Gas network into our platform, DANA, as well as other best practices that will be shared, and it will be a process very similar to the one that we have already adopted for Greece. It will be larger, but from the other end, it will be even easier because it's going to be in Italy.
All this initiative will create an additional CapEx requirement of EUR 800 million, and this CapEx requirement will generate the famous EUR 80 million additional revenues in 2030. So if you sum up the two numbers, the increased EBITDA, the synergies, the efficiency driven by this acquisition will sum up in 2030, EUR 280 million. If we look at some other numbers, and if you put together this number with the number of the acquisition and the price that we have agreed to pay, you can understand why we forecast an EPS accretion in respect to the plan 2023- 2029, that is going to be positive.... already in 2026, so the first year after the closing, and will go up to 15%, one five, by 2029.
To finish this presentation about the acquisition, let me talk about the timeline. As we speak, our team is already completing the filing to be submitted to the government and to the antitrust for their approval, as well as we are working to prepare ourselves for the necessary step for the extraordinary general assembly for the capital increase. We expect that the closing will take place in the second quarter of 2025 , and in the first semester of 2025 , also, the capital increase with a straight issue, rights issue will be completed by the end of the first semester of 2025 . Now, let's move to the plan. Let's move to some numbers. Detailed numbers will be presented by Gianfranco later.
But before going on, let me spend a few words about the scenario in which we are living. Let me share with you some of the evaluation that we are incorporated in our plan. First of all, let's go back to the decarbonization and the energy transition targets. In respect of years ago, now the cost of energy is not anymore an economic issue. It has become a social issue. The fact that with the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, many incentive have been given to the final customer, like each of us, each single of us. That means that the cost of the energy is spread not only on the industry, but also on each single citizen.
On the other hand, the targets set by the European Union by 2050, becoming the first carbon neutral continent, are extremely ambitious, and I think we can achieve those targets as long as we are pragmatic.