"The plants are off . The zinc line is down ." The few words in a message that hundreds of Portovesme srl workers exchanged on Whatsapp chats around 11:30 yesterday certified the end of an era .

The lead line is dead and buried, the zinc line was stopped seven days early due to a technical problem (the closing date had been set for December 31st) and the lithium project is still stuck at its intentions, laden with a thousand critical issues: if investors for the zinc line, which was discussed a few weeks ago in Rome during a meeting that saw Glencore, the Region, the Government and the unions at the table, do not materialize, as of yesterday only the steelworks fumes will remain to represent the operation of an industrial hub that is now such only in name.

An unreal and disconcerting silence, broken only in the afternoon by an internal information meeting, accompanied yesterday.

The most optimistic argue that the investor arriving from who knows where – he doesn't have a name yet – is more than a hypothesis , that the diplomatic channels to get him there are in full swing, and that therefore there is no need to despair. It would only be a matter of waiting patiently, provided that Glencore is interested in bringing in a competitor in-house given that it hasn't really finished with zinc: it works it in other countries where the high cost of energy allows it (also thanks to state aid).

The visit of the ministerial delegation would have certified that the plants are in full health and that there would be no risk of not being able to turn them back on after the shutdown . Was this enough to let yesterday pass in total calm as if nothing had happened? Posterity will be the judge, for now we must deal with what remains.

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