Eni, Italy’s biggest energy group, on Monday agreed to acquire Dominion Resources’ production, development and exploration assets in the US Gulf of Mexico for $4.76bn. The deal would triple Eni’s production in the Gulf to 110,000 barrels a day by the second half of this year, the company said.

The boost in output is especially important to Eni, which like bigger peers such as BP has struggled to meet its output targets.