The Intesa Sanpaolo Group, as the leading Italian bank and among the largest in Europe, has always been committed to supporting the business system and has been working alongside the Institutions to contribute to the strengthening of the country's infrastructure, proposing innovative solutions and playing an active part in investment decisions shared between public and private finance. Today, this approach and this commitment have become particularly important for the full implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), which brings about EUR 200Bn into the real economy. The ambitious investment and reform programme launched by the European Union, with Next Generation EU, has the dual strategic objective of relaunching the economic system following the crisis brought about by the two-year pandemic period and of overcoming the structural weaknesses by increasing the resilience of the Member Countries, to ensure a robust and sustainable recovery.
In keeping with the European philosophy, our National Recovery and Resilience Plan is based on an innovative vision of development, capable of encouraging the country's metamorphosis and strengthening to make it less vulnerable to possible future shocks, as indicated by the European Green Deal and the UN 2030 Agenda. To this end, infrastructure represents a great opportunity for Italy's sustainable development and recovery, as well as a key element to bridge local gaps and improve people's quality of life. The implementation of major infrastructure projects today requires a different approach from the past, with new ideas and extensive collaborations between the private and public sphere, for the definition of the financing process.
In this context, the Intesa Sanpaolo IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division is the key player of a highly innovative loan in the infrastructure sector, aimed at modernising and upgrading the 178 km long Palermo-Catania railway line. Indeed, IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division in partnership with the European Investment Bank (EIB) carries out a financial transaction to the tune of EUR 3.4Bn.
This plan, which aims to facilitate the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects and can become a benchmark for the construction of strategic infrastructure that promote the development of sustainable mobility, entails: an EUR 800M direct loan to the Ministry of Economy and of Finance from the EIB; a counter-guarantee instrument amounting to EUR 1.3Bn, developed by the EIB together with Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, in favour of financial intermediaries, the first EUR 500M of which allocated to Intesa Sanpaolo, the pioneer bank of the project which contributed to the definition of the instrument's scheme, EUR 300M allocated to Cassa Depositi Prestiti and the remaining EUR 500M will be allocated to other financial intermediaries in a subsequent phase. The 50% counter-guarantee is supported by the InvestEU programme and allows financial institutions to double the guarantees offered up to EUR 2.6Bn which, added to the loan granted to the Ministry of the Economy and Finance, bring the total resources raised to EUR 3.4Bn.
The development of infrastructure assets in Sicily and in the south of the country in general is fundamentally important for the overall relaunching of Southern Italy and for the strengthening of the strategic role of the Mediterranean.
"The IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division has worked alongside the EIB to prepare the procedures, contracts and operational mechanisms for this innovative instrument, which is a way for EIB to provide tangible support for the application of the Recovery and Resilience Fund with a novel product, not only in Italy but also in Europe", explained Mauro Micillo, Chief of the Division.
With this transaction as well, Intesa Sanpaolo consolidates its role as a driver of innovation in the dialogue between the public and private sectors, supporting the economic and industrial evolution of our country along sustainable lines. This financing mechanism, designed with the aim of facilitating the implementation of large and valuable infrastructure projects, can be replicated and become a standard of success in the world of sustainable strategic infrastructure construction.