Govt scrapping Whirlpool incentives over plant 'closure'

(ANSA) - Rome, June 11 - Deputy Premier and Labour and Industry Minister Luigi Di Maio said Tuesday that he was scrapping State incentives granted to Whirlpool after the multinational decided to close, reconvert and sell on its factory in Naples.
    "Whirlpool has not respected the pacts and it has taken back its word, saying it wants to close the Naples plant," 5-Star Movement (M5S) leader Di Maio told RTL radio.
    He said he was about to sign "a ministerial directive revoking all the incentives, they have had around 50 million euros since 2014.
    "If you come to Italy and take State money, you can't then go off and close the plants with an attitude that breaches the pacts". Whirlpool recently said it would "reconvert" the Naples plant and then sell it on to a third party.
    Whirlpool hit back at Di Maio Tuesday saying it had never reneged on a deal, that the Naples site would not be "closed" and that it was "committed to finding a solution that guarantees the industrial continuity and the maximum employment levels of the site".