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Priolo

We have used our most innovative and sustainable remediation technologies to regenerate the site.

The most sustainable remediation technologies serving Priolo

The Syracuse petrochemical hub was created as part of the industrialisation plan for southern Italy after the Second World War. This plan was implemented in eastern Sicily by setting up plants for refining oil and processing its derivatives. Since its foundation in 1956, the Priolo Gargallo industrial plant has expanded significantly in the oil and chemical sectors, changing hands many times. In 1991, following a transaction with Enimont, Eni entered the site through its subsidiary Enichem, which acquired the refining plants from Montedison and transferred them to Agip Petroli in 1994.

A state of environmental emergency was declared during this decade (1990) and the site was classified as a Site of National Priority (1998). The Priolo site covers 5,815 hectares of land and 10,815 hectares of sea, including the port of Augusta, an important crossroads for commercial shipping in the Mediterranean. Since 2002, Eni's subsidiaries have carried out emergency safety measures as well as the design, definition, implementation, management and monitoring of systems to eliminate contamination within their areas, in compliance with projects and protocols approved by the control bodies. The regeneration of the area includes circular and sustainable projects, such as the construction of photovoltaic plants, reusing treated groundwater and adopting innovative and environmentally friendly technologies including phytoremediation and permeable reactive barriers.

Our activities in Priolo

Eni Rewind inherited approximately 300 hectares of Enichem property and has been carrying out emergency safety measures, and soil and groundwater remediation since 2002, in compliance with the decrees issued by the Ministry of the Environment. The company has completed the removal of waste and the demolition of the Dichlorethane (DL1), Alkaline Carbonates (CS9) and Propylene Oxide (PO) plants, while the chlor-alkali plant is awaiting authorisation.