Financial autonomy from the State; increase in investments from 1,7 to three billion euros in three years; a thousand new hires; increase in maintenance on the existing road network from 500 million to 1,3 billion by 2019. These are the most ambitious objectives of the Anas 2016-2020 Business Plan, presented today by the president Gianni Vittorio Armani to members of the business community.
These are strategic objectives of the state-owned company (100% owned by the Treasury) for the next few years, regardless of the merger by incorporation with FS (a project under study by the Government, on which a final decision will be taken by the summer). "Total investments, such as state funding, are 20 billion," said President Armani. In the five years, he added, "14 billion will be used on the road. Furthermore, in the same period, 30 billion euros are foreseen in projects” that will go beyond the plan period. Anas investments for new works and extraordinary maintenance of the road network (actual expense) had touched in 2015 the minimum for ten years: only 1,7 billion euros against 2,1 billion in 2014 and an average of two billion in the previous three years (1,9 in 2012, 2,0 in 2013, 2,1 in 2014) and about 2,5 billion a year in the five-year period 2007-2011.
They are four key initiatives envisaged by the Anas 2016-2020 Business Plan: direct management of maintenance; reorganization of compartments with the creation of 'supra-compartmental areas'; investment restart; reorganization of shareholdings with creation of a Newco which groups together the toll concessions in which Anas is present (Cav, i.e. the Passante di Mestre; Sitaf Torino-Frejus; Asti-Cuneo; Traforo Monte Bianco, Aie, i.e. Anas International Enterprise).
Anas also expects an overall volume of higher revenues and economic savings of 570 million euros, of which 520 of economic savings and 50 of higher revenues. Furthermore, the initiatives of the Business Plan will allow a reduction in the maintenance costs of the roads pertaining to Anas of approximately 3,2%, from 21.700 euros/km to 21 euros/km.
The Plan provides in the next four years the possible hiring of a thousand new personnel: 900 as operating personnel for ordinary maintenance, operation and supervision of the national road network, and 100 as technical personnel (mostly engineers) for planning and construction supervision. The assumptions are not certain, however: they are the requirement indicated by Anas in order to be able to achieve its objectives of efficiency and increase in investments. Hiring will be possible only if financial independence arrives (being studied for a year, without having entered into the 2016 Stability law) and also the exit of Anas from the PA, which would free the roads company from the obligations to recruit redundant personnel from the PA (existing constraint today), being able thus freely access the market, with competitions.
This is how President Armani explained the four key initiatives:
1) “A new exercise model that provides internalisation of maintenance activities, as well as an optimization of the quality of the road presence with 900 additional resources on operating personnel. The redefinition of the operating model has the purpose of consolidating the role of Anas as the best manager of the national road network and optimizing the financial resources committed to maintenance and operation activities”;
2) “A new balancing of territorial activities through the creation of supra-compartmental areas that can achieve a process synergy, leaving responsibility for the roads to the compartment. In particular, the entire national territory will be divided into 8 Territorial Macro Areas characterized by a homogeneous distribution of human resources, km managed and surfaces, with the aim of ensuring: greater supervision of operating activities; centralization of administrative and support processes as well as the management of new works; allocation of resources according to efficiency/effectiveness indicators; adequate hierarchical-functional relationships with the related General Management structures";
3) “The reorganization of shareholdings. Anas, with the aim of developing synergies, efficiencies, specialist skills and reducing housekeeper costs, has launched a project to rationalize equity investments, which also provides for establishment of a Newco for the rationalization of equity investments held in companies operating in the toll concession sector and on the foreign market”;
4) “Il
restart of investments aimed at unleashing the Company's potential. Within the Business Plan, a series of initiatives have been identified aimed at streamlining and enhancing the planning, design, procurement and construction of new works/extraordinary maintenance. These are investments related to the planning of interventions for a value of up to 32 billion; of interventions to be tendered up to 22 billion and of 14 billion of interventions to be carried out. In addition to the initiatives aimed at streamlining and strengthening the investment chain, 100 additional resources are planned for the technical staff to be dedicated to design and construction management".
