Apulian Aqueduct ed That have announced a strategic partnership aimed at strengthening the management and development of water resources in southern Italy. The agreement provides for the participation of the two groups in the next public tender to become industrial partners of Acque del Sud Spa, a company that has recently absorbed the functions of Eipli (Authority for the development of Irrigation and Land Transformation in Puglia, Lucania and Irpinia).
According to what is established by current legislation, the sole shareholder of Acque del Sud, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, can he transfer up to 30% of the shares to subjects with operational functions and management responsibilities. In response to this opportunity, AQP and Acea have decided to join together, forming a temporary grouping of companies (RTI) with equal shares, in order to participate in the selection of the new industrial partner of Acque del Sud.
AQP-ACEA: objectives of the alliance
The main objective of this collaboration, explains a note, is to improve efficiency in management of the invasions and hydraulic infrastructures of Acque del Sud, an important resource with a potential annual capacity of 1 billion cubic meters of water, used for drinking, irrigation and industrial purposes.
This alliance, in addition to promising concrete improvements in the management of water resources in southern Italy, could also open up new development opportunities and sustainability in the sector, thus contributing to the well-being of the communities served and the protection of the environment.
Comments
“Managing the large hydraulic infrastructures of Southern Italy with an industrial method is fundamental – explained the president of AQP, Dominic Laforgia – particularly in this historical period characterized by climate change. Acquedotto Pugliese draws much of its water from the Lucanian and Campania reservoirs and has a large adduction system of 5 thousand kilometres, unique in the European panorama in terms of complexity, often directly interconnected with the works managed by Acque del Sud. This makes us not only a partner motivated by the smooth functioning of those works, but also very experienced in the management of large and complex infrastructures. In partnership with Acea we believe we can give impetus to this new company, thus guaranteeing adequate water resources for a large area, the driving force behind the development of Southern Italy".
Fabrizio Palermo, CEO and general manager of Acea, commented: “The partnership signed with Aqp is the result of the agreement signed in June last year between the two companies and confirms the objective of pooling mutual skills to strategically grasp investment opportunities in the water sector, particularly in Southern Italy, an area of the country particularly exposed to the effects of climate change. We are certain – continued Palermo – that the collaboration that is born today between Acea, the first Italian industrial water operator, and Aqp will be able to guarantee Acque del Sud efficient and sustainable infrastructures to protect the resource and benefit the development of the territory. We believe, in fact, that the public-private partnership represents the most effective way to finance adequate investments and for industrial management of networks and hydraulic works using the most advanced technologies".
