Italian energy giant Eni has unveiled HPC6, one of the world's largest supercomputing systems. Located near Milan in Ferrera Erbognone, this system boasts nearly 14,000 GPUs from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD, Financial). The supercomputer, costing over €100 million, is noted for its energy efficiency, being powered by a 1-megawatt photovoltaic plant.
Ranked fifth in the TOP500 supercomputer list, HPC6 is the only non-U.S. system in the top five and currently Europe's most powerful. Eni plans to leverage HPC6 to enhance industrial operations, develop high-performance batteries, optimize biofuel supply chains, and innovate in biochemical materials.
The research team dedicates 70% of their efforts to clean energy, focusing on managing plasma clouds in nuclear fusion reactors and improving carbon capture and solar panel efficiency. Eni is among the few oil companies creating its own supercomputers, unlike others that rent computing time from external facilities.
