The Italian ISAB refinery in Sicily owned by Russia’s Lukoil is still struggling to secure alternative supplies to Russian crude with Italian banks wary of sanctions and being cut off from dollar funding.

• The government is trying to reach a solution to keep the country’s largest refinery online as it produces about 20% of Italy’s fuel.
• Industry Minister Adolfo Urso is meeting with a group of seven banks on Friday to arrange a €700m financing round that would allow the refinery to start buying non-Russian oil. Until now the refinery has been unable to secure enough credit to switch to other crudes.
• The administration has tried to reassure banks that continuing to lend to the refinery after the start of the EU ban on Russian seaborne crude on Dec 5 won’t put them at risk of penalties.
• Other options being considered are to find a buyer for the Lukoil-owned plant or to nationalise the facility.