The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a €500m line of credit for Italian toll road business Autostrade's upgrade of the A1 motorway.

The first tranche of the loan, amounting to €250m, was signed yesterday in Rome and is for use in upgrading the Florence North to Barberino del Mugello stretch of motorway.

The project involves increasing the capacity of the A1 toll motorway between Florence and Bologna and involves a combination of upgrading and widening together with construction of new sections. The A1 is Italy’s main motorway on Corridor I of the trans-European transport networks and the 17km Florence North to Barberino del Mugello section is the Tuscan Apennines.

The latest loan announced today is the EIB’s fourth in support of the Florence-Bologna motorway. “A modern, efficient transport network is a necessary condition for supporting growth,”said Dario Scannapieco, EIB vice-president with responsibility for operations in Italy, Malta and the Western Balkans, “and we have a long and very fruitful relationship with Atlantia-Autostrade which benefits the entire Italian network.”

“We are delighted that the EIB considers us to be a reliable, solvent partner for channelling to Italy EU funds that will be able to improve the competitiveness of the productive sector and in the short term maintain an adequate level of activity in the construction sector,” said Giovanni Castellucci, CEO of Autostrada’s parent company Atlantia.

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