22 January 2013: Roberto Giurastante at the European Parliament presenting a petition against Gas Natural’s planned LGN terminal.
Trieste, February 26th, 2015. – Politicians of the Renzi Government – both on local and Italian level – are hiding from public opinion that the Italian Ministry of Environment’s Commissione V.I.A. (Environmental Impact Assessment Commission) has already approved the debated LNG terminal proposed by Gas Natural Italia in the port of Trieste.
By hiding this information, the Government hopes to avoid Gas Natural’s lawsuit. Indeed, the next hearing before the TAR Lazio (Regional Administrative Court for Lazio) is to take place on March 11th. On the other side, the Government doesn’t know how to justify the capitulation to the people of Trieste.
The denounce comes from Roberto Giurastante, President of the Free Trieste Movement and of environmental organization Greenaction Transnational, and is based on informal informations from Rome.
On January 22nd, 2013, Mr. Giurastante presented before the EU Committee on Petitions [read about it in Italian and in English] the pertinent environmental, economic, security (especially from terroristic attacks) and legal reasons against the project, including the special status of the International Free Port of Trieste. The European Parliament’s examination is ongoing.
Gas Natural’s project, initially supported by local politicians, had been previously stopped by the President of the Port Authority, Marina Monassi with her Deliberation No. 15 of July 26th, 2013 [document in Italian and in in English].
The decision was based on the assessment that the ongoing traffic of huge gas carriers would have damaged the port of Trieste. In particular, it would have nearly paralyzing containers traffic and oil traffic to the SIOT (Transalpine pipeline – TAL). This terminal is especially important because it supplies Southern Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic.
The Republic of Slovenia, represented by Triestine Lawyer Peter Močnik, opposes the LNG terminal as well: the traffic of gas carriers heading to Trieste would damage also the traffics and the development of Slovenia’s nearby port of Koper.
In Slovenia, Gas Natural’s project is opposed also by environmentalist organization Alpe Adria Green, lead by Vojko Bernard and represented in the Littoral by Franc Malečkar.
Since May 24th, 2014 Gas Natural Italia s.p.a. and some partner companies are subject to the Prosecution Office of Palermo’s judicial administration on request of the Direzione Distrettuale Antimafia (Anti-Mafia District Direction).
On February 23rd, 2015, because of her opposition to the LNG terminal, the Renzi Government discharged in advantage President of the Trieste Port Authority Monassi, not long before her mandate’s term. Her seat is now assigned to a commissario (commissioner) appointed by the ruling party for a six-months term: Zeno D’Agostino.
[F.W.]