Francesca Nieddu is the Veneto East and Friuli Venezia Giulia regional director of Intesa Sanpaolo. With her we tackle the issue of port and cruise activities, which are becoming increasingly important for the Italian economy.
Do you see growth in this area and in which trends in particular?
«In 2021 we witnessed a significant recovery in cruise traffic in Italy which recorded movements for about 2.6 million passengers. Italy is confirmed as the first country in the Mediterranean for passengers handled ahead of Spain and Greece. The number of ships in circulation is currently similar to 2019, but there is a lack of full employment levels that currently prevent the recovery of pre-pandemic levels. It is too early to say whether the full revival of the sector can already be achieved in 2023 and much will depend on the evolution of the pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine. It is certain, however, that even in this holiday mode the attention of users to the environmental impact and energy saving will be increasingly high. The growth in demand for cruise tourism, which tripled between 2001 and 2019, has driven the global shipbuilding industry, with the launch of increasingly efficient and sustainable ships powered by liquid natural gas “.
How does this type of activity fit into the local economy?
“Trieste plays a central role both as a port and for shipyards: in 2021 the port, with approximately 134,000 passengers handled and 71 ship calls, ranks 14th in the Mediterranean and 7th in Italy, with an passenger recovery compared to 2020 higher than the average of the Adriatic and Ionian ports. The shipbuilding activity of Trieste with 1.8 billion euros exported in 2021, of which 67% in cruise ships for the United States market, plays a fundamental role in the economy of the province of which it represents 38% of exports . The shipbuilding sector directly employs about 1,300 employees (as of 2019) equal to 12.8% of the manufacturing employees in the province of Trieste and activates a wider chain of companies in Friuli-Venezia Giulia specialized in metallurgy, mechanics and wood and furniture both for the structural part of the ships and for the interior fittings and finishes ».
What is Intesa Sanpaolo doing to support the sector?
«Our Motor Italy program offers companies in the shipbuilding sector financing and relaunch initiatives through development and growth projects, in line with the objectives of the NRP. We support sustainable 4.0 investments of small and medium-sized enterprises and growth through extraordinary finance and digitalization, promoting and supporting structural projects, individual and supply chain business development programs and initiatives with a high economic and social impact that can attract investors. In this context. In particular, for Trieste we recently signed an agreement with the Port System Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea for the development of port activity and the economy connected to it, with important positive impacts also for the Trieste hinterland. The agreement makes new credit available to companies for a billion and a set of operational supports, such as the supply chain development program, to accelerate the relaunch together with the territorial system, with a commitment aimed at a sustainable future from an economic point of view. environmental and social