(supersedes previous)ENI oil
and gas giant said Tuesday it has suspended contracts with
suppliers for its oil treatment plant near the Basilicata town
of Viggiano.
Management earlier told union delegates it will have to lay
off 430 employees at the Viggiano plant, which has been shut
down under court order since March 31 due to a graft and illegal
waste disposal probe by anti-mafia investigators that led to the
arrests of five ENI employees.
ENI later said 354 people currently working there will be
laid off.
The company has denied charges of improper waste disposal
at its plant, and its appeal is pending before the supreme Court
of Cassation. The Viggiano plant produces 75,000 barrels a day.
The probe covers various oil plants in the southern Basilicata
region and led to the resignation of Federica Guidi as industry
minister earlier in the month.
Also on Tuesday, unions warned the shutdown is also having
negative effects on related oil-sector companies that employ
some 3,000 people.
The regional secretaries of CGIL, CISL and UIL labor
federations issued a joint statement expressing "serious
concern" over the situation and called for the plant to resume
working regardless of its current legal situation.
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