MILAN (Reuters) - Italy’s government on Friday formally launched the procedure to revoke concessions held by Autostrade per l’Italia to operate toll highways after the collapse of a bridge in Genoa caused at least 38 deaths, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said.

Conte said the Transport and Infrastructure ministry had sent the letter to Autostrade, a unit of infrastructure group Atlantia ATL.MI which manages the section of the A10 motorway linking the port city to the French border.

“This disaster obliges us to take new initiatives which are much more rigorous than those adopted by previous governments,” Conte said in a statement, adding that the government held the company to blame for Tuesday’s collapse.