INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Italy has placed a refinery run by Russian oil giant Lukoil under provisional state supervision to avoid its closure and guarantee energy
supplies, a government source told AFP on Thursday.The ISAB refinery is one of the biggest in Europe and was in danger of having to cease
production because of the European Union embargo on the import of Russian crude oil by sea, which comes into force on Dec
5.The "provisional administration" of the Sicily-based refinery will last for a maximum of 12 months, the source said following a cabinet
under state supervision, Rome is following the example of Berlin, which in September took control of the German activities of the Russian
oil group Rosneft that runs numerous refineries there.Fearing sanctions, European banks stopped financing operations at ISAB and providing
