Italian Industry Ministry Corrado Passera said Wednesday there are no plans to merge the country's two energy grids Snam SpA (SRG.MI) and Terna SpA (TRN.MI).

"There exists no hypothesis of a merger with Terna" and Snam, Passera said in Rome, referring to recent media speculation the two companies could join forces to fend off a possible foreign takeover.

Natural gas transmission company Snam is controlled by Eni SpA (E), but the Italian government has decided this must end as part of the process to open up the sector to competition.

Terna is Italy's biggest electricity grid. It is state-controlled, as is Eni.

-By Carlo Renda, MF-Dow Jones, and Liam Moloney, Dow Jones Newswires; +39 06 6976 6924; liam.moloney@dowjones.com

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