A judge in the city of Potenza on Wednesday ordered the release of ENI's Centro Oli oil treatment plant in the southern Basilicata region. The plant near the town of Viggiano in the Agri Valley in the southern Basilicata region was seized on March 31 in a probe that resulted in ex industry minister Federica Gudi resigning amid conflict-of-interest claims.
It directly and indirectly employs 2,000 workers and technicians, and treated some 75,000 barrels of oil a day before two tanks and a reinjection well were seized.
Prosecutors in June greenlit work to modify the plant, which has since been carried out and approved.
State-controlled ENI, nine other companies, and 60 individuals have been investigated for illegal waste trafficking in the southern Basilicata region, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors say ENI reaped millions in "unjust profits" from illegally dumping waste from its Viggiano plant. The company has defended its business practices in Viggiano.
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