awarded 3.7 billion works in Southern Italy, over 50% of Pnrr funds already awarded – Corriere.it

Rfi has awarded 3.7 billion lire for the start-up of construction sites on two important railway lines that are strategic for the infrastructural development of the South: a lot on the Salerno-Reggio Calabria and one on Palermo-Catania-Messina. An important step forward to improve railway mobility in Southern Italy, also with the interventions included in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (Pnrr). Of the approximately 24 billion from the Pnrr assigned to Rfi, the lead company of the FS Group’s Infrastructure Pole has already awarded tenders for an economic value of over 12.7 billion euros. Of these, only in the first months of 2023, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana awarded contracts for 6.5 billion. The awarding of over 50% of the Pnrr funds guarantees the opening of construction sites in the coming months and the acceleration of the objectives that Rfi and the FS Group, led by CEO Luigi Ferraris, pursue in the medium and long term, in agreement with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport.

Salerno-Reggio Calabria

The tender for the executive design and execution of the works of the Campania section of the Salerno-Reggio Calabria between Battipaglia and Romagnano was assigned to a consortium of companies which brings together the companies Webuild (lead partner), Ghella, Impresa Pizzarotti and TunnelPro. This is a contract worth over 2 billion euros, also financed with Pnrr resources, for the completion of which the managing director of RFI, Vera Fiorani, was appointed extraordinary government commissioner. The works will involve the construction of a new 35-kilometre high-speed standard line, where a crossroads will be built to guarantee interconnection with the current railway line from Battipaglia to Potenza. The project involves the construction of 18 kilometers of tunnels and six kilometers of viaducts. The completion of the Battipaglia-Romagnano section will have positive effects on the connections towards Potenza and therefore towards the Adriatic backbone. The new Salerno-Reggio Calabria railway line, which is an integral part of the “Scandinavia – Mediterranean” European corridor of the Ten-t network, will allow for further development of the movement of people and goods along the north-south axis of the peninsula, accelerating dynamics of economic, social and tourist growth. As regards the other sections of the line, Rfi is planning those in the Calabrian territory, in particular, for the Cosenza-Paola/San Lucido lot (Santomarco tunnel) the public debate has concluded and, shortly after the authorization procedure has been completed, proceed with the publication of the tender at the beginning of the summer. On the other hand, for the sections that concern Romagnano-Buonabitacolo and Buonabitacolo-Praia, some in-depth studies are underway on the technical-economic feasibility project which, once completed, will allow the currently suspended public debate and the consequent authorization process to be restarted in the coming weeks.

Palermo-Catania-Messina

On the Palermo-Catania-Messina line, the tender was also awarded for the executive design and construction of the works of the railway section between Caltanissetta Xirbi and Lercara, which forms an integral part of the Palermo-Catania-Messina itinerary. The contract, which has a value of over 1.65 billion euros, also financed with Pnrr funds, was awarded to the consortium of companies made up of Webuild (lead partner), Ghella, Impresa Pizzarotti, Seli Overseas and TunnelPro. For the construction of the work the extraordinary government commissioner Filippo Palazzo. The planned interventions involve the construction of 47 kilometers of a new route with respect to the current railway line, 21 of which with viaducts (10 kilometres) and eight natural tunnels. The project also envisages the creation of a new station in Vallelunga. In addition to the lot just awarded, the Enna-Dittaino, Dittaino-Catenanuova, Catenanuova-Bicocca, Giampilieri-Fiumefreddo sections are currently under construction. At the end of April, the contract for the Caltanissetta Xirbi-Nuova Enna line was awarded, while those for the Catania node and the Fiumetorto-Lercara section will also be awarded shortly. At the end of the works it will be possible to connect Palermo and Catania in less than two hours. The phased activation of the new stretches of line will allow for a progressive reduction in travel times. The planned interventions will also increase the standards of regularity and punctuality of the trains. Finally, the construction of the entire Palermo-Catania-Messina work will make it possible to improve the interconnections between the internal areas of Sicily and the three cities.