Mantua – A surge of GDP and employment, safer and less polluting transport, achievement of European standards on the movement of goods by water: Confindustria Mantova and Confindustria Veneto Est have commissioned a study on the economic repercussions ofriver stretch between Mantua and Rovigo and the results are amazing. To carry out the work on the blue highway the European House-Ambrosetti in collaboration with the Province of Mantua and the Province of Rovigo, Infrastrutture Venete Srl, Port System Authority of the Northern Adriatic Sea, Rovigo Interport. The contents of the report, introduced by president of Confindustria Mantua, Fabio Viani, frames some key elements. Here they are.
First of all, today the transport sector accounts for over 30% of Italian energy consumption and generates over 20% of harmful emissions. The decarbonisation imposed by Europe requires +25% growth water transport community. Furthermore, in Italy the waterway system accounts for only 0.1% of the volumes of goods transported, compared to an average value of over 20% in the top 5 European benchmark countries (Netherlands 42%, Romania 25.1%, Bulgaria 24.4%, Belgium 11.5%, Luxembourg 8.0%, followed by Germany 7.4%), first in the class compared to the EU-27 plus UK average of 5.6% (15%). In short, if Italy does not want to remain in the rear, it must get busy.
In this context the Fissero-Tartaro-Canalbianco-Po waterway of Levante, the so-called blue highway, is a key element due to its geographical and economic location and the fact that it is navigable 365 days a year. It is no coincidence that its use has grown by +160% since 2015. Finally, the water transport chain involves 25 economic macro-sectors, over 4 thousand employees (direct, indirect and induced) and generates an added value of almost 500 million of euros for the territory (about 3% of the GDP of the provinces of Rovigo and Mantua. Translated into value, the economic multiplier of this sector indicates that every euro invested generates 2.7 of added value.
Something however, it blocks this profitable business, which – if only the planned investments were spent on concrete works – could produce a return of 1.4 billion euros between now and 2030, as well as 3,500 more jobs and 100 thousand tons less CO2 per year. And they are the infrastructural deficiencies (ports to be upgraded, and Mantua alone has 7 public and 6 private ones), antiquated river fleet, bottlenecks in the public administration authorization chain.
European House-Ambrosetti, at the end of the report, indicate some ways out. We would need more flexible rules on customs, additional public investments, the development of intermodal rail-road-water transport, urban plans to encourage new industrial settlements along the Po river, such as the Hydrogen Valley which is developing in Mantua. And in order not to just make theory, the study hopes for the creation of a permanent table made up of the stakeholders of the Blue Motorway, which will monitor its creation.
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