The President of the Transalpine Employers’ Association urges the construction “as soon as possible” of a tube connecting Barcelona and Piombino
Confindustria, the powerful Italian employers’ association, is calling for the construction of a gas pipeline connecting Spain and Italy as soon as possible, so that transalpine companies and families can take advantage of the fact that the Spanish territory has the largest network of regasification plants in the European Union, with a capacity far exceeding national needs. The tube could connect Barcelona to the port of Piombino, in the Tuscany region.
“We are for it. We believe it is important that Spain’s regasification capacity becomes available throughout Europe. Today it is not used because it is not connected to the energy nodes of the other member states,” Carlo Bonomi, president of Confindustria, told this newspaper after the celebration of the meeting of this body this Monday in Rome, culminating in a Vatican audience. with Pope Francis.
The construction of a gas pipeline between Spain and Italy is seen by the latter country as a solution to overcome its dependence on Russian methane imports, which last year covered more than 40% of Italy’s needs for this hydrocarbon. After the start of the invasion of Ukraine, the government of Mario Draghi accelerated the search for alternative exporters and today the gas sold by Moscow has been downgraded to 18%.
To meet the target of not sourcing gas from Russia by the second half of 2024, Rome will need other suppliers, including Madrid thanks to its high regasification power. “We need to build a gas pipeline with Spain,” noted Bonomi, who criticized France for blocking the Midcat, the pipe that would increase the capacity to transport natural gas from Spanish factories to the rest of the continent through Gallic territory. This project has been rejected by the French President, Emmanuel Macron.
“France opposes it for a national interest. It has nuclear power and sells electricity, so it has no interest in the rest of the countries being energy independent. But all European nations must show solidarity,” says Bonomi, for whom it is crucial that the EU intervenes in this area so that the gas connection between Spain and Italy can be available as soon as possible. Confindustria is committed to achieving this goal, both with its Spanish counterpart, the CEOE, and with Business Europe, the organization that unites all European employers’ organisations. “It is a European security issue and should be treated as such.” In Italy, the EU’s second largest manufacturing power, “energy and raw materials are something fundamental that needs to be addressed urgently, as our economy is transformative.”
The Confindustria meeting takes place a few days before the general election, to be held on September 25, which polls say could be won by the far-right Brothers of Italy. Bonomi assured that the businessmen are not worried about the final victory of the formation led by Giorgia Meloni. “We talk to the governments elected by the people. We have our ideas and we believe that the decisions made in favor of companies are not business, but are in the public interest. When businesses do well, they create jobs and income for millions of families.
When asked about the possible rise in the national debt through the application of populist measures, the leader of the employers’ association laughed, recalling the extremely high debt burden the area already suffers: it exceeds 150% of GDP, one of the highest levels of Western countries. “We are used to government debt. The important thing is how it is spent. If it is used to stimulate economic growth, there is no problem. When it kills you is when the economy is rising and not growing,” he replied, asking if the new Executive’s first measure would be a cut in labor costs.
Source: La Verdad
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