Cassa Depositi e Prestiti has signed a 4 million euro loan agreement for the benefit of Padua Freight Village, aimed at supporting the purchase and installation of a new electric gantry crane as part of the broader process of automating the services offered by the intermodal terminal and their expansion. The intervention consolidates the relationship between the parties, which are committed to enhancing the sustainable transport mode also in view of the increase in traffic recorded by the hub in 2020, despite the health emergency.
In detail, the resources granted by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti are earmarked for the purchase and installation of the fifth electric gantry crane, which will come into operation by the first half of 2021, guaranteeing greater productivity at the facility. This will be a flywheel for the development of Padua Freight Village, which will be able to manage traffic peaks with faster interventions on trains and road vehicles, optimising routes and the movement of goods. The new crane will already be equipped with all the necessary sensors so that it can be remotely controlled in the future.
The operation is part of an overall plan to develop the intermodal hub that had already begun in 2016 with the purchase of four cranes currently in operation and financed to the tune of 13 million euros by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti.