The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Port System Authority of the Northern Tyrrhenian Sea (Autorità di Sistema Portuale del Mar Tirreno Settentrionale; AdSP MTS) have entered into a €90 million (US$98 million) financing agreement to support the modernisation and expansion of the Port of Livorno in Italy. The modernisation will help increase the port's productivity, safety, and environmental sustainability.
The funds made available by the EIB to expand the Port of Livorno, which forms part of the Scandinavian-Mediterranean corridor of the TEN-T network, will go towards the construction of the Darsena Europa container terminal, a strategic project to accommodate ships already operating in international traffic, to ensure the competitiveness of the Port of Livorno and the safety of navigation there.
In concrete terms, the main operations involve the construction of new breakwaters and related dredging activities, the definition of a containment area for sediment from dredging, and the construction of a new access channel to the port's terminals.
The EIB said these infrastructure operations will not only help improve the efficiency and safety of the port, but will also increase its resilience to potential future climate events such as sea level rise. These will also help improve the stability of the coastline thanks to the construction of a sand pipeline, which will be used for future nourishment of the sandy coast located immediately north of the mouth of the Arno river's floodway.
