Francesco Mazzagatti CEO of Viaro Energy

Francesco Mazzagatti is the founder and CEO of Viaro Energy and also CEO of its main operating subsidiary, RockRose Energy․ Viaro Energy is a London-based independent upstream oil and gas company with working interests across the UKCS and Dutch North Sea․ Viaro Energy is owned by Viaro Investment Limited, and Francesco Mazzagatti holds at least 75% shares and voting rights in Viaro Investment Limited‚ according to Companies House. Mazzagatti, who is 40, is also the CEO of the SRM Foundation‚ a UK-based charity he founded to accelerate the transition to a green energy economy․ Mazzagatti has an MBA from Buckinghamshire New University and has completed his Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility Studies at the London Business School․

An energy leader who has successfully taken on multiple leadership roles

Not every energy executive starts a charitable foundation, but Francesco Mazzagatti did. Through the SRM Foundation, which he founded and leads as CEO, he channels resources into clean energy research, biodiversity projects, and climate mitigation as a UK registered charity. That commitment sits alongside his day job: Founder & CEO of Viaro Energy, one of the North Sea's most significant investors, and CEO of RockRose Energy, the group's dedicated North Sea oil and gas producer. His industry standing has also earned him seats beyond his own companies — as a Board Member of IOGP Europe, an advisor to the Energy Council's network of energy executives, and a member of the World Energy Capital Assembly's advisory board. It's a portfolio that spans production, policy, and philanthropy in equal measure.

The Career Journey of Francesco Mazzagatti - From Humble Origins to Energy Tycoon

Decades before Francesco Mazzagatti‚ the founder and CEO of the London-based Viaro Energy‚ became one of the highest paid executives in UK oil and gas‚ he was pushing crates of fruit out of a converted olive oil depot in rural Italy.

He grew up in Polistena‚ Calabria‚ one of Italy’s poorest regions; his father‚ who drove lorries‚ ran a small one-vehicle logistics business․ At age 18‚ Mazzagatti asked his parents for documents to incorporate a company for his birthday․ Pascal SAS was founded days later and named after his elder brother who had died eight years earlier․ In 2007‚ that company made the first installment on the purchase of a shuttered olive oil depot in Gioia Tauro. The plan was to build a modern distribution center like the ones operating in northern Italy․ Supported by government funds‚ the depot became the core of a small fruit and juice distribution business․

From Fruit to Petrochemicals

In 2012, Napag Italia was formed as a new company established specifically to take the family's fruit and juice trade into import and export markets. In 2014, Napag became involved in oil and petrochemical trading across Europe and the Middle East․

At some point in his career, Mazzagatti went to London Business School to study sustainability and corporate responsibility‚ and did an MBA at Buckinghamshire New University․

Building a Network‚ Then a Company

Those commodity trading relationships opened up the possibility of investing in underlying assets․ Mazzagatti’s commodity trading network led him‚ between 2018 and 2020‚ to being appointed as a director at Alliance Petrochemical Investment‚ a company registered in Singapore‚ thus further expanding his interest in petrochemicals․ Viaro Energy, his primary vehicle for direct ownership of oil and gas producing assets, was founded in 2020.

Spearheading Viaro Energy’s acquisitions

The same year‚ Viaro Energy acquired RockRose Energy for approximately £247․6 million‚ which added producing assets and a seasoned operating team․ Successive acquisitions‚ made between 2021 and 2023‚ further expanded Viaro Energy's footprint in both the UK and Dutch North Sea․ Today‚ Mazzagatti’s Viaro Energy is an independent oil and gas company that has a portfolio of mainly non-operated joint ventures in gas-producing fields․ According to the firm, Viaro Energy accounts for around 9% of UK gas production on a gross basis.

Major Deals & Acquisitions

Viaro Energy’s July 2020 offer for RockRose Energy, at 1,850 pence per share, valued the company at £247.6 million, a 64% premium to its closing share price on 3 July 2020, the last business day before the announcement. The takeover completed in September 2020. In December 2020, SSE agreed to sell its non-core North Sea gas assets to RockRose Energy, Viaro Energy’s main operating subsidary. The sale closed in October 2021. RockRose Energy signed a share purchase agreement in February 2023 to acquire Spark Exploration UK. In 2023, RockRose completed buying a 15% interest in the Bressay oil field and the EnQuest Producer floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) from EnQuest for £46 million. In 2025, Viaro entered the German market and renewable power by acquiring Evoterra’s integrated-energy portfolio.

Francesco Mazzagatti CEO of Viaro Energy & Rockrose Energy

Francesco Mazzagatti's Investment Strategy in the North Sea

Francesco Mazzagatti found the North Sea attractive because it was low risk from a geopolitical and economic standpoint. The advantages he cited in one interview are established infrastructure, strong data sets and decades of operational experience. “Our disciplined approach to capital allocation allows us to identify and unlock value from existing assets whilst bolstering regional energy security‚” Mazzagatti said in the interview․

Mazzagatti spent over a year in discussions with a financial adviser before selecting RockRose Energy, which was Viaro Energy’s first acquisition and which marked the firm’s entry into the North Sea.

Viaro Energy’s portfolio consists largely of non-operated interests in mature, gas-weighted fields. Its stated strategy combines targeted acquisitions, asset divestments, organic growth and life-extension projects for mature assets. Viaro Energy’s private ownership and no-dividend policy, says Mazzagatti, allow it to reinvest all revenues in

How Francesco Mazzagatti Built a $1.2 Billion Net Worth

With an estimated net worth of $1.2 billion, Francesco Mazzagatti ranks among the wealthier executives in the UK's energy sector. The bulk of his fortune traces back to Viaro Energy, the company he founded and now leads as CEO, alongside his role at RockRose Energy. Mazzagatti's wealth reflects years of strategic investment in North Sea oil and gas assets, sustained even as the broader industry navigated a difficult fiscal environment. His financial standing has helped cement his reputation as one of the leading energy entrepreneurs operating in the region today.