Brussels, 16/06/2014 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has approved the release of structural funding for three major sustainable transport projects in Italy, Poland and Slovakia. European support for each in the 2007-2013 financial programming period is above €50 million and therefore requires approval from the European Commission.
On Thursday 12 June, European Commissioner for Regional Development Johannes Hahn confirmed that €116 million would be released for the Port of Naples, in Italy. This sum will come from the European Regional Development Fund and will go towards the first phase of a project to improve port infrastructure in both safety and environmental terms. The first phase will cost an estimated €154 million and is expected to be completed by the end of 2015. It will see renovation of the main docks, the setting up a system for recycling wastewater and use of solar energy. Connecting the port to the road and rail networks will also be reorganised. Commissioner Hahn pointed out that, given that the Port of Naples is of strategic importance for the Mediterranean basin, this EU-funded project would help the southern Italian economy develop by creating better freight transport conditions. The second project phase includes construction of a new container terminal, which will be funded through the structural funds for the 2014-2020 programming period.
Slovakia: on Friday 30 June, €84.3 million from cohesion funds was approved to help modernise the section of railway line between Bratislava and Zilina. This is an important line for the priority rail transport corridor in the core TEN-T network. The project relates to 9 kilometres of railway track which are to be made safer and faster.
Poland will benefit from €72 million from cohesion funds to modernise its air traffic management system. Equipment such as communications and radio navigation and monitoring instruments will be updated. Total investment will be €92.9 million for a project that is expected to be completed by the end of 2015. The airports benefitting from this funding include Gdansk, Katowice, Krakow, Lodz, Szczecin, Warsaw, Wroclaw and Zielona Gora. Commissioner Hahn is delighted that better traffic management will improve aviation safety and make it more sustainable. The more efficient system will help reduce CO2 emissions by cutting delays and flight diversions. (MD)