Italian judge drops Genoa dam case against Webuild CEO

By Emilio ‌Parodi

MILAN, Dec 18 (Reuters) - An Italian judge on Thursday dropped a case against Webuild CEO Pietro Salini and three ‍other people ‌over alleged misappropriation of public funds in a project to build a dam, two sources with direct knowledge of ⁠the matter told Reuters.

Genoa judge Nicoletta Guerrero upheld the request ‌for dismissal submitted in recent days by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), the sources said.

The investigation centred on a contract, estimated to be worth 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion), awarded to build a dam off the harbour of the northwestern Italian city of Genoa to a consortium ⁠led by Webuild, with 900 million euros of the cost coming from European and national public funds.

Both the EPPO request for dismissal and the fact ​that Salini was among those investigated had not previously been reported.

In the ‌request , reviewed by Reuters, the delegated European prosecutor at ⁠the EPPO's Turin office asked the Genoa court to drop the case, which had alleged offences ranging from abuse of office, bid rigging, irregularities in the selection procedure, falsification, and misappropriation of public funds.

Accepting the request for dismissal, the judge ​also cleared Paolo Emilio Signorini, former head of Genoa's port authority, Alberto Colosio, Webuild's tender office manager, and Jan Albert Vandenbroeck, chairman of dredging firm Sidra and a member of the consortium, which also includes Fincosit and a Fincantieri unit.

Webuild did not comment on the matter. Sidra and Signorini's lawyers were not immediately available for comment.

COMPLAINT BROUGHT BY ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP

Webuild, ​Italy's largest ‍construction group, began construction of the ​dam in June 2023 through the PerGenova Breakwater consortium.

The investigation began following a complaint the following month from a representative of an environmental group which raised concerns over public interest, tender procedures, environmental risks and potential financial damage.

Italy's anti-corruption authority ANAC later flagged issues related to the tender procedure, pricing and technical compliance.

The case was transferred from Genoa prosecutors to the EPPO as the project is partly financed by the European Investment Bank.

Genoa's Guardia di Finanza and Carabinieri police led the probe, ⁠which found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing. 

"No concrete elements emerged to support the alleged offence", the EPPO document stated.

Prosecutors noted the tender lacked genuine competition, but said this was permissible ​under emergency rules introduced after the deadly collapse of a motorway bridge in Genoa in 2018.

On the awarding procedure, European prosecutors said the abolition of the abuse of office offence by Italy meant that this charge could no longer be considered.

As for possible misappropriation of public funds, prosecutors wrote that "no criminal acts have ‌emerged at this stage, nor any further investigative leads".

Potential environmental violations were described as "administrative breaches", with "no indication of criminal relevance".

The request for dismissal was made "due to lack of evidence of any offence".

($1 = 0.8532 euros)

(Reporting by Emilio Parodi, editing by Keith Weir)