Italy to seize Russian oil refinery – media
Rome has imposed state supervision on a Lukoil-owned processing plant ahead of an EU embargo, according to AFP news agency | The Italian government has placed a refinery in Sicily owned by Russia’s largest private oil company Lukoil under state trusteeship, days ahead of an EU embargo on Russian crude oil imports, AFP reported on Thursday, citing government sources. ● The ISAB facility near Syracuse is one of the biggest in Europe and refines a fifth of Italy’s crude. The plant has relied solely on Russian Urals oil and now risks stopping production and being closed once the ban comes into force on December 5. ● The Italian government is working on a “temporary solution” to keep the refinery operational in order to save jobs and secure energy supplies, and does not rule out nationalization, La Republica reported, citing the president of the Sicily region, Renato Schifani.