TRIESTE – He had already flagged them during the parliamentary hearings, but yesterday Marco Consalvo, the new President of the Port System Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea, clearly reiterated the action lines for his term: execution of ongoing projects, verification of the implementation of the Free Port regime, and stronger links with the area’s industry.
These are major challenges, but necessary ones to relaunch the Port of Trieste and, in part, also Monfalcone, after around 550 days without a President and now awaiting the Secretary General to complete a governance structure that will be called upon to take important decisions starting in the coming weeks.
Suez, the Arctic route, international geopolitical crises, cooperation among Northern Adriatic ports and much more. Everything was on the table yesterday at the Authority’s headquarters during the press conference introducing the new President, but attention quickly shifted to the substantial funding already allocated by the Complementary Fund to the PNRR and, in part, still waiting to be spent. Hence an acceleration on the Servola Station project and the Pier VIII project (public-private partnership), on Pier VII, which is already being redeveloped, and also on verifying implementation of the prerogatives of the International Free Port. Not to mention one of former President Zeno D’Agostino’s key priorities: the link between port and industry as a driver for the local economy.
«The ability to adapt, to be flexible, with a modern infrastructure, is essential. It’s work that must also be done with the main operators, including shipowners, everyone else, from freight forwarders onwards, because my approach, coming from the private sector, always has development and growth as its goals», said Consalvo.
The new President then spoke of «a knock-on effect on everything, including staff, industrial relations, everything».
Among the new elements, announced almost under his breath, the pursuit of energy independence for the port. A practical way to move beyond the overused term “sustainability” and to give concrete substance to a trend already underway with quay electrification.
