My Case

Introduction

It would be wiser to start with a short intro to explain a few things … how I got into trouble with one of the major Big Oil sister and the European Commission.

I started my satirical blog, Bioplastics News, in December 2013. The idea behind it was to learn how to create and manage a news website—or a blog.

Knowing it would be a long journey, I needed to choose a topic that would keep me interested over time.

I had an interest in oil and plastics, so bioplastics felt like a natural fit. It sounded future-proof, something that would only grow in relevance.

What fascinated me most about oil and plastics wasn’t just the materials themselves, but the corporate systems behind them—how these large machines operate, and the scale of their impact, both positive and negative.

I’ve always loved writing about scandals involving oil, chemical, and plastics companies. They became the springboard for my satirical tone.

And who doesn’t love a nice satire on a corporate scandal?

“The concentration camps corpses were sent to the BASF (IG Farben) factories in Auschwitz to be converted into fertilisers. The fertilisers were used to grow the vegetables consumed in the camps. So to speak, BASF was the first to incorporate cannibalism … metaphorically speaking of course.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

Disclaimer: The following text reflects personal opinions, subjective interpretations, and satirical commentary on complex industry and regulatory developments. It should not be construed as factual allegations, verified reporting, or legal claims against any company, institution, or individual mentioned. References to corporate behavior, regulatory processes, or legal proceedings are expressed in a critical and interpretive manner only, and readers should consult official sources and court records for verified information.

Who is BASF?

“Biofuels and bioplastics are built upon the Brazilian colonial sugar cane plantations. That’s what the local bastard told us, a certain Eni Versalis; racketeer, proxenete and local Sheriff of a corrupt town called ‘Berlaymont’.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News

Braskem I’m Green Bio-PE and the Slavery Connections

“The plastics produced by BASF and ENI (Versalis Novamont), like the rest of our plastic waste, ended up somewhere in the oceans or dumped in Africa, probably Nigeria. And they tried to blame it on China. All of this was cooked up in the cafetaria of the Berlaymont.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor of Bioplastics News.

Ellen MacArthur Does Plastic Colonialism in Kenya (FREE)

INDUSTRY BOYCOTT

Eventually, I ended up facing an industry boycott against me — specifically because of OXO.

European Bioplastics (EUBP) is the main European federation representing companies that produce or market biodegradable, compostable and bio-based plastics. The organisation brings together major actors from the plastics, chemical and energy industries operating within the European Union, as well as several national-level industry federations.

The federation was originally established as a working group initiated by the chemical company BASF together with the German government, before later evolving into the current European industry association.

European Bioplastics acts as the central lobbying and coordination body for the bioplastics sector in Europe, with the mission of promoting and defending the commercial and regulatory interests of companies active in the field.

Novamont, which is a 100% subsidiary of ENI, is a founding, leading and active member of European Bioplastics. The company participates extensively in the organisation’s governance and activities, including the Board of Directors, General Assembly and various working groups.

According to industry estimates, Novamont is the largest bioplastics company in Europe, with an estimated market share of around 60%.

Evidence indicates that Novamont representatives participated in a European Bioplastics meeting during which the possibility of boycotting Axel Barrett and the publication Bioplastics News was discussed.

European-Bioplastics-Working-group-Regulatory-Affairs-180220 Download

European Bioplastics Calls for a Boycott

ENI

I had relatively spared ENI compared to other big fossil multinationals so it came to my surprise that they would sue me.

ENI and its subsidiary entity Novamont (owned at 35% by the Italian Government) are asking me to pay €3.150.000 for something published on my satirical website: Bioplastics News

So, I had no other option than to look deeper into ENI. And I must say, this company is fascinating.

“How is it possible that an Italian state-owned oil company ENI (formerly known as AGIP) is considered one of the major “Big Oil” sisters, when Italy itself hasn’t any oil. Where does ENI gets its oil from? The European Commission couldn’t answer that question because they were jerking off in the cafetaria”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor, Bioplastics News

The major hat trick of Eni is that it somehow managed to emerge without the same colonial baggage attached to its name. In Africa, ENI doesn’t seem to carry the same “bad aura” as companies like TotalEnergies, for instance.

But that’s only on the surface. Once you dig deeper, a much uglier story starts to emerge. Of all the questionable countries in Africa to do business with, Eni chose Nigeria. And that’s where ENI found itself caught in a complicated and deeply controversial situation.

“To add insult to injury, it was the Nigerian government who accused the local sheriff, Eni Versalis, of satisfying himself in the cafetaria of the Berlaymont in Brussels.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

ENI and the Nigerian oil scandal

Skeletons

TRIBUNALS

I’m invited to go the tribunals in September 2026. One in Rome and one in somewhere else. More to come soon …this part is under construction.

Beware of potential ‘Boiler Room’ Scams

MAFFIA & NAZIES

One of the accusations is that I have allegedly associated ENI with the Sicilian crime syndicate.

I think that was probably one of my best jokes ever. One of my best satire.

My second-best satire would be to say that … the judge who was responsible for the Kromabatch vs Novamont case was later shot death in his own courthouse… something to do with the mafia apparently.

Some of the things that have happened in bioplastics could easily be the script of a corporate maffia nazie thriller:

BASF and the fertilisers of the Nazies.
Braskem and the colonial sugarcane plantations.
The NatureWorks episode with Thailand money.
The EU-wide ‘plastic bags’ and ‘mulch films’ cabal against British “metallic additives” bioplastics technology, and the push toward German and Italian state-supported compostable alternatives.
The PHA sector collapse and wave of bankruptcies — Danimer Scientific, Yield10 Bioscience, Bio-On, BioAmber, and Metabolix.
The Bio-on Conspiracy;
Avantium with its historical links and origins within the Shell ecosystem.

Taken together, it doesn’t always feel like a clean technological transition — it feels more like an industry shaped by politics, history, and high-stakes competition as much as chemistry.

“A plastic Sicilian maffia kind of thing, something cooked up in the cafetaria of the Berlaymont. The local chef, ‘Eni Versalis’, an ex-convict, converted the place into a red district.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

Marco Astorri, the Golden Boy of Bioplastics

“You need to break a few eggs to make bioplastics. The Berlaymont cafeteria can feel like the right place to ‘cook up’ your competitors over lunch. The only constraint, at least in theory, is that you have to allow the local employees to jerk off during their lunch break.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

“Remember the massive wave of class action lawsuits filed in the US against Danimer Scientific over its biodegradability claims? What the hell was that? At times, the whole thing felt like a corporate conspiracy. Something cooked up in the cafetaria of the Berlaymont”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News

“The biggest bioplastics greenwashing campaign of the past 10 years was the launch of PBAT as biodegradable mulch film. The launch of an ecological conspiracy. Something cooked up by the nazies in Auschwitz. A bit like the fertilizers approved by the European Commission.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News

The Plastic Maffia (FREE)

My Apologies

“Eni Versialis, the local sheriff, held a gun against my head. I had no other option than to apologise. Eni and his lawyers were part of the Sicialian clan who ran the cafetaria of the Berlaymont when the EU officials were at work, compromising and censuring the European middle class … ‘Freedom of Speech à la sauce Berlaymont’ as Eni Versialis would say.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

My Apologies to ENI

CARTEL

One of the accusations is that I have allegedly said that

ENI/NOVAMONT has been fined €32 Mln for cartel, collussion, conspiracy, fraud, market manipulations

The Italian Competition Authority has accused Novamont and its parent company Eni of engaging in unfair commercial practices in the Italian bioplastics sector. The Italian Antitrust Authority has imposed a fine of €30.36 million on Novamont and an additional €1.7 million–jointly with its parent company Eni–for abuse of dominant position in the production of biodegradable bags, covering at least the period from 2018 to 2023.

In addition, the same authority has also accused Eni of participating in a cartel in the biofuels market. The six fined companies are Eni (which received a fine of €336 million), Esso (€129 million), Ip (€164 million), Q8 (€173 million), Saras (€44 million), and Tamoil (€91 million). Tamoil was also fined for the behavior of the Italian division of Repsol, which it acquired in 2021. The Antitrust Authority determined that the six companies formed a cartel (as such an agreement is known in the industry) to set the price to be assigned to the biofuel component, one of the various components that make up the final price of fuel, as well as the amount of subsequent increases.

ENI has thus increased the price of fossil fuels.

“If ENI managed to increase the price of fuel in Italy without colluding, conspiring, or defrauding anyone, then they should be called the government or at least the Vatican.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

ENI is fined €336 million for Biofuel unfair commercial practices

Regional Administrative Court rejects Novamont’s appeal against the AGCM fine

Why the Italian Court Upheld the Antitrust Ruling Against Novamont and Eni

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

“Why is the European Commission giving so much credit to an Italian ‘supermajor oil company’?”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News

ENI suggests that I wrote the following:

European Commission DG Competition tried to cover up the Novamont Cartel.

The European Commission (DG Comp) refused to consider the case of Symphony Environmental independently.

ECHA had begun examining Symphony Environmental’s bioplastics technology under the REACH framework. However, the European Commission later asked the agency to halt this process as the matter was being addressed through the legislative process of the Single-Use Plastics Directive.

The rapporteur responsible for the directive in the European Parliament was Vittorio Prodi, the brother of former Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi.

Industry groups, including European Bioplastics, of which Novamont/ ENI is a member, actively lobbied during the legislative process leading to the inclusion of the anti Symphony Environmental bioplastics technology.

The most significant difference between the technologies of Symphony Environmental and Novamont / ENI is that Symphony’s solution uses a metallic additive.

Within the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD), wording was introduced stating that plastics containing “metallic additives” intended to enhance biodegradability are prohibited in the EU. Critics have argued that this amendment reflected strong industry influence.

This happened during a major plastics crisis: massive plastic waste accumulation, exports of millions of tonnes of waste to Asia and Africa, growing concerns over microplastics, China preparing to restrict waste imports, widespread allegations of fraudulent waste exports, and increasing pressure on the plastics recycling sector.

Against that backdrop, the European Commission chose to ban two specific categories: expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam), one of the most widely used packaging materials in the world, and the much narrower category of plastics containing metallic additives intended to promote biodegradability. Critics note that this precise wording closely aligned with industry interests.

The issue was later brought before the European Court of Justice. Symphony Environmental challenged the measures, while consultants advising the European Commission supported the Commission’s position.

Critics also point out that the Commission appeared to overlook previous legal disputes involving ENI / Novamont and Symphony Environmental. One example often cited is the Kromabatch vs ENI (Novamont) case in Italy, where Kromabatch, Symphony Environmental’s distributor, was involved in litigation connected to the defence of Novamont’s biodegradable bags market.

The European Commission declined to investigate allegations of unfair commercial practices involving ENI and Novamont, despite the fact that Italian antitrust authorities found both companies in breach of competition rules.

At the same time, ENI received more than €1.3 billion in loans from the European Commission and the European Investment Bank in less than three years, even though the company reported profits of around €5 billion in 2024 and a similar level in 2025. This has raised questions about why such substantial public financing is being directed toward a highly profitable supermajor oil company.

ENI stands for Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi (National Hydrocarbons Authority). It is one of Europe’s largest integrated energy companies and is widely recognised as a supermajor in the global oil and gas sector.

“Do you understand why people find ENI highly suspicious of moral corruption? The European Commission wasn’t able to answer that question. Most of their cafetaria employees were too busy conspiring against plastic bloggers.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News

Public Money for Big Oil? Questions Sent to the EIB About Its Financing of ENI

“Eni Versialis, the local sheriff of a town called ‘PorcaPutana’ (‘PorcuPine’ in English), and the Sicilian clan were harassing and robbing the American tourists. Eni was an ex-convict — a bastard born from the chaos of the Nazi siege of Stalingrad. Meanwhile, the European Commission did absolutely nothing; they were ‘satisfying themselves’ in the cafeteria.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News

Controversies and Scandals Involving EU Trade Commissioners and DG Trade

Public Money for Big Oil? EIB Responds to ENI Financing questions

EU Commission Accused of Maladministration of Biofuels

I have allegedly said:

We’re looking for victims of Novamont Cartel.

This was presented as a call to support companies affected by Novamont’s commercial practices on the Italian market. In practice, it was BASF that provided evidence concerning Novamont’s activities — BASF, the world’s largest chemical and plastics company.

What about the smaller companies? Perhaps some were too afraid to speak openly against Versalis, the local heavyweight of the industry, and share their own experiences regarding what they viewed as unfair commercial practices by Novamont.

I have allegedly said:

Organised the financial bankruptcy of this bio-refinery on purpose so as to claim millions from EU institutions.

Mega corruption deal between ENI and EIB. European Commission gives €500 million to an oil company in mega corruption deal. I don’t know what level of corruption we’re dealing here but I think it’s substantive.

ENI wins slapp bully award 2025

I’ve accepted a bribe from Novamont ….

“Most of these EU-funded bio-refinery projects are a mean to force local farmers into industrialisation, intensified agriculture and globalisation. EU funds are used to finance the rich and steal from the poor. You can order such meals at the cafetaria of the Berlaymont.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

I’ve invoiced Novamont 3 times; one of which … the description didn’t match the service at their demand.

They cancelled their forth invoice because I had allow Michael Stephen (Ex-UK MP) to have a column on Bioplastics News… that’s what they told me on the phone.

It’s an anxious moment to be left out by the leader of the bioplastics industry. It took me years before I began to understand the full picture of this corporate cabalistic landscape.

Michael Stephen was among those who brought a case before the EU Court of Justice challenging the EU SUPD restrictions on “metallic additives” plastic technology, as well as the way the regulatory review process was handled within ECHA.

“In the beginning, I had a honeymoon relationship with Novamont (ENI). It took a German, Dutch French conspiracy to break that relationship. A kind of cabal within the cabal. I know it’s hard to conceive, but it was German BASF who testified against Novamont in the Italian Bioplastics / Biofuel antitrust cartel case. The European officials didn’t pay attention as they were watching porn in the cafetaria.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor of Bioplastics News.

Disclaimer: The following text reflects personal opinions, subjective interpretations, and satirical commentary on complex industry and regulatory developments. It should not be construed as factual allegations, verified reporting, or legal claims against any company, institution, or individual mentioned. References to corporate behavior, regulatory processes, or legal proceedings are expressed in a critical and interpretive manner only, and readers should consult official sources and court records for verified information.

Catia Bastioli, Person of the Year 2017

“The anti-oxo campaign was a corporate cabal initiated by European Bioplastics and Novamont (ENI) to destroy a competing bioplastics technology. The European Commission was part of the cabal. They saw this as an opportunity to satisfy themselves in the cafetaria”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

Disclaimer: The following text reflects personal opinions, subjective interpretations, and satirical commentary on complex industry and regulatory developments. It should not be construed as factual allegations, verified reporting, or legal claims against any company, institution, or individual mentioned. References to corporate behavior, regulatory processes, or legal proceedings are expressed in a critical and interpretive manner only, and readers should consult official sources and court records for verified information.

The Anti Oxo History

I was told by a certain member of the Sicilian syndicate, an ex-convict named ‘Eni Versialis’, that Novamont may have been involved in the anti- Bio-on conspiracy.

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

Disclaimer: The following text reflects personal opinions, subjective interpretations, and satirical commentary on complex industry and regulatory developments. It should not be construed as factual allegations, verified reporting, or legal claims against any company, institution, or individual mentioned. References to corporate behavior, regulatory processes, or legal proceedings are expressed in a critical and interpretive manner only, and readers should consult official sources and court records for verified information.

Marco Astorri, the Golden Boy of Bioplastics

SLAPPS

ENI wins the SLAPP Bully award 2025

CORPORATE SABOTAGE

“I hope that sheriff Eni Versialis and his princess Novamont are not spying on me. I hope their consultants are not involved in spamming Bioplastics News… because that wouldn’t be the gentlemanly thing to do, hé.”

Axel Barrett, Chief Editor Bioplastics News.

ENI linked to espionage scandal?

https://www.politico.eu/article/italy-milan-hackers-carmine-gallo-enrico-pazzali-samuele-calamucci-equalize-mercury-advisors/?reg-wall=true