From the thermoelectric plant to the golf course. This will be the fate of the "Alessandro Volta" of Montalto di Castro, which second the agreement between Enel and the Amati Architetti studio, will become a small tourist port, to be obtained in the sea intake channel of the former nuclear plant. A tourist center will develop around the port, open all year round, with commercial and entertainment activities, a wellness center and a sports center with a large golf course but also tennis courts and hotels.
The multifunctional project "Marina della Tuschia" was chosen to redevelop the area as part of the Futur-e program, launched by the group led by Francesco Starace and based on economic, environmental and social sustainability, to which a business plan had to be attached and a detailed technical report for the creation of this smart village in the Mediterranean. The added value of the "Marina della Tuscia" proposal, compared to the other three finalist projects (also multifunctional), is the ability to present different types of enhancement of a vast area of 220 hectares and the possibility of keeping the complex open – and therefore guaranteeing its profitability – throughout the year. The aspects related to the circular economy and innovation also had an impact on the evaluation.
In the marina there will be a shipyard for the repairs of boats. The sarcophagus, which was supposed to house the reactor of a nuclear power plant that never became a nuclear power plant, will be kept to house commercial and hospitality activities. And even the chimney will somehow be preserved, albeit in a different guise, to become an environmental icon of this new tourist-commercial area. The plan is certainly ambitious, especially for the interventions that will be necessary for the construction of the new marina. It is estimated that the total investment for the construction of the new pole is between 100 and 200 million euros. The Amati studio presented itself "equipped" with a series of Italian and European partners, specialized in various activities - from the management of marinas, shopping centers, to hotel chains - ready to enter the project as soon as it is verified and defined in detail the feasibility of the plan. And it is precisely on these aspects that the managers of Enel Produzione are already working together with the winners of the competition. The local authorities, the municipality of Montalto di Castro, the province of Viterbo and the Lazio Region, have already been involved in the commission that selected the projects. Now all aspects of the authorization process must be verified and, if necessary, any adjustments to the plan must be defined. The goal is to arrive at the beginning of next year with a timetable for the interventions in order to be able to stipulate a preliminary contract for the sale of the area by Enel Produzione.
The electric group will continue to support the partners also during the demolition phase (which will concern the plants currently used for thermoelectric generation) and the first construction of the works and only in a subsequent phase will the deed be signed. A similar process has already been followed for the other Futur-e projects launched: for the redevelopment of the former Trino Vercellese plant, the preliminary agreement has already been signed for the creation of a car-themed play park (inside there will be an Enel logistics centre). In Piombino, the preliminary contract was signed at the end of 2017 to build a multifunctional tourist center here too. The thermoelectric plant on the Po di Porto Tolle will become an open-air village, with facilities for a 5-star campsite focused on enhancing local gastronomic excellence and water sports: in this case, the signing of the preliminary sales contract is expected by the end of the year. The Alessandria gas turbine plant was at the center of a competition of ideas which led to the emergence of a proposal for a playground for extreme sports, the proposal for which is now being evaluated for pre-feasibility.
