Biorefinery Livorno, Giani: “Today in the Council the agreement that concludes the authorization process”

The Livorno Refinery: Bridging History and a Biorefinery Future

Oh, history! It’s that awkward relative we can’t quite ignore. Much like my Aunt Edna, we’ve been stuck with it for ages, dragging it from party to party, and now we get to celebrate it while looking toward a shiny new future. Today in Livorno, this very dance took center stage. With over 80 years under its belt, the Eni industrial site held an event that, let’s face it, sounds like a ripe scene from a sitcom—“85 years of history and a future as a biorefinery.” If that title doesn’t scream, “We’re getting the family together for a reunion!” I don’t know what does.

The ever-eloquent Eugenio Giani took the podium, likely wondering if he was toasting to an oil refinery or a fine vintage bubbly. As if on cue, he told those gathered about the symbolic laying of the biorefinery foundation stone—a stone that will hopefully not get thrown in his direction by the environmentally conscious critics! I mean, there’s nothing like opening a new chapter in industrial transformation and decarbonisation in the same breath. It’s like saying you’re reducing calories while serving a triple chocolate cake. We can dream, right?

Let’s break it down further. A hefty 500 million euros is what we’re tossing into the pot here, and yes, it’s not Monopoly money, folks. This investment aims at revamping the refinery spread over a whopping 160 hectares. That’s like an entire neighborhood dedicated to funnelling crude oil into something resembling fuel—and thankfully, this will maintain jobs! As Giani added—a sentiment that echoed into the hearts of worried workers—he assured that the relevant workforce and industries would survive this evolution. You know, just in case they had their resumes polished for a quick exit to a new world of bioproducts.

On today’s agenda: the authorization process! Who doesn’t love a good bureaucratic detail? It was practically a script for a comedy, waiting for the ‘punchline’ moment when the audience realizes how long this can take. By the sounds of it, Giani’s on track to have local governments hopping through hoops like circus performers. But can we blame him for trying to untangle those government knots that can snare anything quicker than a cat at a laser pointer convention?

The area’s excitement swells as new plants for HVO diesel, HVO naphtha, and even bio-LPG come to life from renewable raw materials. Oh, it’s lovely to see sustainability woven into the future fabric. It’s like they’re sewing Mother Nature’s name on a baseball cap! However, while the new plants arrive, the existing fuel production line will keep chugging away like a well-fed train. Someone has got to keep the lights on, after all!

Of course, dignitaries were out in force for the occasion, including Giancarlo Dionisi, the prefect of Livorno, and mayors Sara Paoli of Collesalvetti and Luca Salvetti of Livorno. One can only imagine the carefully curated speeches, filled with a blend of pomp and circumstance, served alongside caffeine and snacks—much needed as they embark on this journey of energy transformation.

Finally, it wouldn’t be a proper corporate celebration without hearing from the big guns—G. Zafarana, the board president, and G. Ricci, the COO of Eni Industrial Transformation. They likely offered insight that was deep enough to require a snorkel, though let’s face it, who isn’t slightly more concerned about the snacks at these events by that point?

So there you have it: a biorefinery on the horizon, ready to blend the best bits of our industrial past with eco-conscious ideals of the future. It almost feels like we’re treating pollution with a “reverse makeover”—taking the dirty and turning it into something cleaner, sprightlier, and ultimately more palatable for our planet. Remember, in the world of refineries, we might not be able to change that much, but we can always change what we do with it! Cue applause.

History alongside the future, the present that prepares the industrial transformation and decarbonisation of the Livorno Refinery. Eugenio Giani spoke today at the event entitled “85 years of history and a future as a biorefinery”, which celebrates both the over eighty years of activity of the Eni industrial site and the symbolic laying of the foundation stone of the new biorefinery, which the president countersigned this morning.
Giani participated in the inspection of the areas where the new plants will be built, with an investment of over 500 million and preserving the workforce and related industries, and then announced: “This afternoon in the Regional Council the authorization process for the intervention: we have on the agenda the resolution of the Region which, after consulting the Municipalities and the Province, establishes the agreement on the Single State Authorisation”.

Today the refinery is spread over an area of ​​approximately 160 hectares between Livorno and Collesalvetti and is connected by oil pipeline with the port facilities of Livorno and with the Calenzano depot (Florence).
The affected areas await the opening of the construction sites where the three new plants will be built which will produce HVO diesel, HVO naphtha and bio-LPG from renewable raw materials (European Directive on Renewable Energy), while the fuel production line will be kept running.

The prefect of Livorno, Giancarlo Dionisi, and the mayors of Collesalvetti, Sara Paoli and of Livorno, Luca Salvetti, participated in the celebration. Speakers included the president of Eni’s board of directors, G. Zafarana, and G. Ricci, chief operating officer of Eni Industrial Transformation. the director of the Livorno refinery P. Chèrié Lignière.