FILE PHOTO: A Saipem logo in seen on the bridge of the Saipem 10000 deepwater drillship in Genoa's harbour, Italy, November 19, 2015. Picture taken November 19, 2015. REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

MILAN (Reuters) - An Italian judge has ordered oil contractor Saipem and former executives to stand trial on charges of market manipulation and false accounting, the company said on Friday, confirming an earlier report.

The trial, revolving around a profit warning issued in 2013 which sent Saipem shares sharply lower, is set to begin on May 23 in Milan.

Former Chief Executives Pietro Tali and Umberto Vergine are among the managers to be sent to trial. Both have now left the company.

Saipem said it was confident the trial would confirm the correctness of its activities.

Under Italian law, companies are responsible for the actions of their managers and can be fined if found guilty.

The lawyers of the former executives involved declined to comment. They have previously denied any wrongdoing.