Greenpeace Italy and the ReCommon
association said Tuesday that they and 12 individual Italian
citizens were suing energy giant Eni for its allegedly role in
the climate crisis.
Eni rejected the allegations and said it was confident it would
win the case.
The plaintiffs said in a statement that the civil lawsuit
regarded past and potential future damages resulting from Eni's
contribution to climate change, saying the company had been well
aware of this for decades but chose to ignore it.
They accuse the oil-and-gas group of practices that breach the
Paris Agreement on climate change, which was signed by the
Italian government.
The lawsuit also cites Eni's two main shareholders, the Economy
and Finance Ministry and State lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti
S.p.A.
"ENI scored record profits in 2022, yet it continues to invest
in expanding its fossil fuels business, dismissing climate
impacts and ignoring local communities in Italy and around the
world who are suffering the consequences of the climate
emergency," said Chiara Campione, the Head of the Climate Unit
at Greenpeace Italy.
The lawsuit asks a Rome Court to rule on whether Eni has
violated the individual plaintiffs' human rights to life,
health, and private and family life.
The suit also demands that Eni revise its industrial strategy to
reduce emissions by at least 45% by 2030 compared to 2020
levels, so that it is in line with what the international
scientific community says is needed to keep the average global
temperature increase below 1.5 degrees Celsius.
"The region where I live, Piedmont, is already suffering the
effects of dramatic drought, as the very low level of rainfall
recorded this winter show, a problem that is likely to get worse
in the future," said Rachele Caravaglios, one of the individual
plaintiffs.
"That is why I decided to join this legal action.
"I don't think it's fair that Italy's main energy supplier, of
which the State is the largest shareholder, can continue year
after year, an investment programme that goes against what the
best available climate science recommends, limiting our options
to create a sustainable, resilient and equitable future for
all".
An Eni spokesperson the company would show in court that the
accusations were "groundless" and demonstrate the "correctness"
of its activities and of its "transformation and decarbonization
strategy".
The spokesperson said this strategy "puts together and balances
the essential objectives of sustainability, energy security and
competitiveness" for Italy.
The spokesperson also said Eni would evaluate taking legal
action to protect its reputation from the "repeated defamatory
actions staged by ReCommon".
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