ENI Strikes Again: A Textbook Environmental SLAPP

On 7th October 2024, ENI, Italian oil giant and one of the world’s biggest climate polluters, filed a SLAPP against Greenpeace Italy, Greenpeace Netherlands, and ReCommon. Today, the CASE Coalition officially recognises the lawsuit as a SLAPP, intended to silence organisations exposing ENI’s role in the climate crisis.

Through its lawsuit, ENI seeks to prohibit Greenpeace Netherlands, Greenpeace Italy, and ReCommon from critical language and to force the defendants to publish the judgment in several major Italian newspapers. This SLAPP appears, in part, to be retaliation for the lawsuit filed against ENI in May 2023, as well as the organisations’ broader environmental criticisms.

This lawsuit is a textbook example of an environmental SLAPP, designed to stifle public interest criticism and suppress scrutiny of international oil companies for their role in the climate emergency. By seeking to limit free speech and restrict the dissemination of scientific insights, ENI’s legal attack is not about justice – it is about power, intimidation, and shutting down public debate.

This case is part of a broader pattern. Fossil fuel giants like Shell, TotalEnergies, and Energy Transfer have all resorted to SLAPPs to suppress climate activism and silence those who challenge its destructive business model. This case exemplifies corporate abuse: a multinational with vast resources dragging NGOs into lengthy and costly legal battles.

But the tide is turning. The EU’s anti-SLAPP directive, which Italy must implement by May 2026, is a crucial step in protecting free speech and public participation. CASE stands with Greenpeace Italy, Greenpeace Netherlands, and ReCommon against ENI’s attempt to erode democracy and silence climate justice movements. Governments across Europe must act now to enforce anti-SLAPP protections and prevent corporations like ENI from weaponising the legal system against those fighting for climate justice.

ENI is also a finalist in this year’s European SLAPP Contest, in the running for the widely-coveted “SLAPP Addict of the Year” award. This comes only four years after they won “Corporate Bully of the Year” in the 2021 Contest. 

If you are particularly moved by this SLAPP, you can vote for ENI in the Contest’s “People’s Choice Award” and ensure they get the recognition they deserve for their commitment to using SLAPPs.