Aspi accelerates on investments and maintenance to become “a mobility manager”. This is what is envisaged in the new 2020-2024 business plan presented today, 21 January, by Autostrade per l'Italia pending the Atlantia board of directors (scheduled for the afternoon) called to take stock of the negotiations with the CDP-Fondi consortium in view of the developments that should arrive at the end of the month.
The CEO of Autostrade, Roberto Tomasi, announced "a 21,5 billion euro plan, 14,5 billion in investments and 7 billion euros in maintenance by 2038".
Going into details, investments (new works and existing asset upgrades, underlined the manager) will rise by 110%, going from the 2,9 billion euros envisaged in the 2015-2019 plan to the 6,1 billion established in the 2024 plan. maintenance costs they will grow by 900 million to 2,5 billion (+60%) with an "unprecedented multi-year maintenance plan".
“The vision we are building is of a new Autostrade per l'Italia that we hypothesize and want it to become a mobility manager and not just a concession manager“, Tomasi then explained.
The CEO emphasized the "ability to put in place, and therefore create, all that is needed to be able to evolve and modernize the infrastructure we manage today". The company, he continued, "is equipping itself with the skills to cover the life cycle of the infrastructure". Two pillars on which the plan is based: digitization (“the company must become data driven, he said) and innovation. “We must invest in innovation and all this must be done in a context of sustainability”.
To achieve these purposes the company has also allocated 200 million euros for “digitisation of our infrastructures thanks to 5G technology”. In particular, the plan aims to have 30% of the motorway network "connected" by 2030 with 5G sensors and technologies.
Other important element of the plan are the recruitments: Aspi will hire 2.900 people by 2024, with a possible 7-10 thousand new jobs including related industries. “A high recruitment focus on STEM resources to address the needs of technical areas (eg, engineering), and upskilling requirements driven by Digital Transformation; enhancement of gender diversity as a strategic development action”. the CEO also reassured: "We have no intention of sending anyone away and we will go and manage this transformation", asking the workers to "adapt".
