An ambitious project, a significant investment and the involvement of 250 members: the social oil mill of Lanusei, born from the union of thirteen municipalities of Ogliastra in an agricultural cooperative, represents a concrete example of collaboration and vision for the future. And yet, for months, the plant is stopped. Not due to technical or management problems, but due to a bureaucratic block which risks compromising everything.
The news was relaunched by theUnione Sarda, but it is a problem that affects many oil mills and not only on the island.
The story
Last year the Small Owners' Cooperative of FrantoI participated in the PNRR call for the modernization of oil plants, accessing the sub-measure dedicated to “sustainability of the extra virgin olive oil transformation process”. The goal was clear: replace outdated equipment and make the production chain more efficient and environmentally friendly.
The new machinery was purchased last July and installed by September. However, since then the plant never went into operation. «We cannot use it because we cannot upload the testing request to the ministerial platform Sian», complaint Patrizio Re, president of the cooperative. "There are no official explanations: the system doesn't work and nobody explains the reason".
The problem is not isolated: several oil mills throughout Sardinia are in the same situation. The renovated facilities are ready, but practically unusable. Meanwhile, Companies that have advanced expenses and taken out bank loans are starting to pay interest, finding itself in a crisis generated not by internal errors but by an administrative blockade that no one seems to want to resolve.
No reply
“No response is coming from the ministry. And the Region, even though asked, says it cannot intervene”, continues Re. The deadline to complete the investments, set for January 31, 2026, looms: beyond that date, the PNRR funds will be revoked and the sums already disbursed will have to be returned.
According to the second amendment to the ranking of the call (published on May 30, 2024 with Determination no. 3352), out of 24 applications submitted, 18 are eligible and fundable, with over 1,4 million euros already allocated out of a total available of more than 2,8 million. Yet, to date, no sum has been paid by Argea SardegnaThe Lanusei cooperative submitted the payment request on February 10, 2025, but since then all has been silent.
“Many companies have paid all the expenses in advance, counting on the reimbursement provided for by the tender”, explains King further. “Now, without answers, they risk financial collapse.”
The cooperative has made an urgent appeal to the competent authorities, in particular to Argea Sardegna and the regional Department of Agriculture: “Immediate intervention is needed. We cannot accept that bureaucracy blocks innovation and penalizes those who have invested with confidence in a more sustainable and modern agriculture”.
