Senate approves Gasparato’s appointment as president of the Venice Port Authority

TRIESTE – Matteo Gasparato, currently Commissioner of the North Adriatic Sea Port Authority, has received the Senate’s approval for his appointment as president.
The Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Matteo Salvini, is expected to sign the appointment decrees within the week. Earlier today, the Senate’s eighth committee expressed a favorable opinion on the candidates proposed by the Minister for the presidency of eight Port System Authorities, including the North Adriatic Sea (ports of Venice and Chioggia), to be led by Gasparato.

The committee’s vote brings an end to months of uncertainty that had stalled the renewal of leadership at several Italian ports. The next step is Salvini’s formal signature, which will convert the current extraordinary commissioners into presidents with mandates running until 2029. The official announcement is expected within days.

Alongside Gasparato for Venice and Chioggia, the Senate approved the appointments of Giovanni Gugliotti (Ionian Sea – Taranto), Francesco Benevolo (Central-Northern Adriatic – Ravenna), Davide Gariglio (Northern Tyrrhenian – Livorno and Marina di Carrara), Raffaele Latrofa (Central-Northern Tyrrhenian – Civitavecchia, Fiumicino, Gaeta), Eliseo Cuccaro (Central Tyrrhenian – Naples, Salerno, Castellammare di Stabia), Paolo Piacenza (Southern Tyrrhenian and Ionian Seas – Gioia Tauro, Crotone, Corigliano Calabro) and Domenico Bagalà (Sea of Sardinia – Cagliari and other Sardinian ports).

The Senate’s green light comes after weeks of political tension within the governing coalition. Salvini had repeatedly criticized the delays and, faced with the parliamentary deadlock, had already signed three urgent appointments: Francesco Mastro (Southern Adriatic), Francesco Rizzo (Strait Authority) and Bruno Pisano (Eastern Ligurian Sea).
With the new approvals, the framework of Italian port governance is finally nearing completion, while the appointment of Marco Consalvo for the Trieste and Monfalcone Port Authority remains pending, awaiting hearings in the parliamentary committees of both chambers.