Italians PM eyes Timisoara for modern interporto

A consortium of Italian companies, also comprising the Fininvest holding owned by Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, is planning to build in Timisoara a multi-modal logistic centre, called “interporto.” The project is to be carried out together with local authorities.

These logistic centres provide services in the field of merchandise shipping, storage and distribution, also connecting road, river and air operators, both national and international.

Talks regarding this project started in March this year, when representatives of Timis County reached a principle agreement with their counterparts from the Italian region of Venetto.

“The total value of the project amounts to several dozens of million euros, but the exact figure will be set as soon as the Italian partners conduct a technical analysis,” said Constantin Ostaficiuc, vice-president of Timis County Council.

He says that a new round of meetings with representatives of the Venetto area is scheduled for September, when the Romanian officials will travel to Italy. The project initiators are also hoping to benefit from financing from Phare funds and the European Bank for Investments.

“In order to carry out this project, we located an 80 ha land in Calea Sagului, just across the street from Metro. The land will be leased and this is where we intend to build the warehouses,” Ostaficiuc added.

When contacted by Ziarul Financiar, the president of Banca Italo-Romena Gheorghe Muntean said, “we can give you no details about this project yet. We will probably be a part of it, but details regarding collaboration aspects are not public yet.”

The Timisoara-based interporto will follow the standards set by the Padova-based one (one of the seven logistic centres in Italy), and is expected to host several warehouses, administrative buildings and a customs house.

Local authorities say that this location will serve in fact as a huge wholesale warehouse: the imported merchandise will be re-distributed across the country, while Romanian products will be shipped abroad.

Two companies will be established for the project to be developed properly: one of them will be in charge with building the complex, whose main shareholders will be Italian companies IMP (Industrie Maurizio Peruzzo), Monlandys and Fininvest, while the rest of shares will be held by the Timis County Council and by several Romanian investment companies. The second company will be managing the interporto.

In April 2001, Italy ranked sixth in the top of states that had invested in Romania, with 478.1 million dollars invested since 1991, following Holland (958.4 million dollars), Germany (719.9 million dollars), the US (558.9 million dollars), Cyprus (514.8 million dollars) and France (484.2 million dollars).