Eni Code of Ethics

Companies often publish Codes of Ethics to guide behavior, prevent misconduct, and reinforce their values.

The Italian oil giant Eni was no different!

Its Code of Ethics spoke about integrity, transparency, accountability, anti-corruption, and the protection of whistleblowers. It expressly prohibited any form of retaliation against those who reported wrongdoing in good faith.

In theory, it was exactly what any professional would hope to find in a major corporation.

But there is a difference between publishing a Code of Ethics and applying it in practice.

In 2001, when I encountered situations that I considered incompatible with those principles, I made a simple decision:

📌 to act in accordance with the company's own Code of Ethics.

I believed the company would support someone who defended the very values it claimed to uphold.

I was wrong.

In the years that followed, I would discover that following a Code of Ethics can be far more difficult than writing one.

To be continued...

✅ Learn more about my history with the Italian oil giant Eni:

1️⃣ Memorial (1999–2025);

2️⃣ Chronology of facts supported by documentary evidence.

The day it all began

Every story has a starting point.

Sometimes it is not a major decision.

Sometimes it is simply a moment when someone realizes that something should not be happening.

In 2001, while working for AGIP do Brasil - then a subsidiary of the Italian energy giant Eni - I identified facts that I considered incompatible with both the words and the spirit of the company's Code of Ethics.

At that moment, I had two options:
🔹 remain silent;
🔹 or act in accordance with the principles and values that Eni claimed to uphold.

I chose to blow the whistle ‼️

The events that followed would shape the next 25 years of my life.

Follow the upcoming posts to discover every detail of this story.

✅ Learn more about my history with the Italian oil giant Eni:

1️⃣ Memorial (1999–2025);

2️⃣ Chronology of facts supported by documentary evidence.

Whistleblower: hero, villain or simply a fool?

Many years ago, I wrote an article for a British magazine with that title.

At the time, it was merely an intellectual question.

Today, it has become deeply personal.

Over the course of nearly 25 years, I have been called many things:
✔️ whistleblower;
✔️ former employee;
✔️ activist;
✔️ critic;
✔️ a problem to be eliminated;
✔️ an inconvenient person.

Yet the question remains exactly the same.

What happens when someone decides to report what they genuinely believe is wrong?

Codes of Ethics encourage employees to report wrongdoing.

Companies often state that they prohibit retaliation and that whistleblowers will be protected.

Corporate statements frequently celebrate ethics, transparency and integrity.

But the real test begins when someone actually speaks up.

That is precisely where the question that has accompanied me for nearly a quarter of a century begins:

📌 Is a whistleblower seen as a hero, a villain, or simply a fool for believing that truth matters?

My story has spanned:
🔹 five different Boards of Directors;
🔹 three Chief Executive Officers;
🔹 four Shareholders’ Meetings where my case was raised by a critical shareholder;
🔹 SLAPP lawsuits;
🔹 regulatory authorities;
🔹 investigative journalists;
🔹 and nearly 25 years of accumulated documentation.

And still, the question remains unanswered.

Perhaps because it is more uncomfortable than it appears.

Hero? Villain? Or simply someone who refused to look the other way?

✅ Learn more about my history with the Italian oil giant Eni:

1️⃣ Memorial (1999–2025);

2️⃣ Chronology of facts supported by documentary evidence.