Italian State Railways has signed an agreement with European Investment Bank (EIB) for a 500 million green bond of euros from which Trenitalia (lead company of the Passenger Hub of the FS Group) will benefit through an intercompany loan.
This will help boosts up the quality of railway services in Campania and Lazio through the purchase of new electric trains. The main objective is to encourage the modal shift towards rail, thus promoting the development of sustainable mobility in the region.
Purchase of 102 electric regional trains
The resources invested by the EIB will be used for finance the purchase of 102 new electric trains for regional transport. The trains will be equipped with ERTMS technology, the most advanced railway signaling system in Europe, and will respect the high standards of accessibility, safety and infotainment.
The two types of trains, “POP” (high capacity) and “ROCK” (medium capacity), will reduce environmental impact thanks to highly energy-efficient technologies and will be highly recyclable, with over 95% of their material destined to recycling.
In service in 2027
The new electric trains, scheduled to enter in service by mid-2027, will be used to improve the offer of regional railway services in Campania and Lazio, in accordance with the respective Service Contracts.
FS: sixth bond subscribed by the EIB
To date, Ferrovie dello Stato (FS) has issued six bonds subscribed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) since 2015, with a total value of 1,6 billion euros, of which over 1 billion is represented by green bonds.
From 1998 to today, the EIB has supported the development of the railway and high-speed systems in Italy with over 13 billion euros.
Today's agreement confirms the set of commitments between the parties in the field of sustainable finance.
“This operation, which will contribute to modernization of the regional train fleet in Italy, further consolidates the already excellent partnership between the EIB and FS, fundamental for promoting sustainable mobility and economic development in Italy. Green bonds represent an excellent alternative to traditional financial products to support projects that contribute to the climate transition,” he commented Jasmine Vigliotti, Vice President of AT. “Not many people know that it was the EIB that launched green bonds in 2007 and since then we have issued green bonds worth over €69 billion in 23 currencies.”
“The operation signed by the EIB further strengthens its trust and interest in FS, demonstrating the great work carried out in recent years by two fundamental players for the development of our country” he declared Marco Fossataro, Chief Financial Officer of FS.
