Mantua, the Italian capital of hydrogen. The HyMantovalley project, part of the development program of a Hydrogen Valley based on the river port of Valdaro, with related logistics platform, and a three-modal transport system (water, rail and road).
The location of the hub is strategic, in the center of northern Italy and close to two corridors of the trans-European transport networks.
The value of the planned investments, some of which are already underway, is 75 million euros, financed in part by the European Union through various programs, including the Interregional innovation investments instrument. The Hymantovalley project, presented on Wednesday 27 September at the Casa del Mantegna, will have the first international partner meeting in Mantua from 2nd to 4th October.
Sixteen partners from four European countries, Austria, Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands, will be involved, with a total budget of over 9 million euros, 70% co-financed by European funds.
Nicola Sodano, sole director of Agire, the Province’s in-house company for the management of renewable energy, introduced the project, pointing out that «Agire will be the point of reference in our province for the promotion of an energy vector such as green hydrogen , which for many represents the future but which in Mantua is already the present.”
Fabrizio Cardilli, hydrogen project development director of the Sapio group, underlined that «the project will make Mantua a focal point in the hydrogen production chain: development of know-how, storage and distribution through pipelines and logistical handling, with large repercussions on the territory». Mantua will be «a technological development hub capable of managing the production and distribution chain, also planning the development of demand and exploiting the strategic positioning of the territory».
The impact on local companies was the focus of Maurizio Migliarotti, general director of Confindustria Mantova. «This is an ambitious and necessary program, given the extreme difficulties of recent years. We will take the project to the districts of the province to illustrate its scope.”
The President of the Province Carlo Bottani concluded by elevating Mantua to the “national capital of hydrogen”.
The Councilor Murari of the Municipality of Mantua added that «this is a strategic project, capable of uniting the issues of industrial competitiveness and decarbonisation, in the name of the environmental sustainability» and Stefano Arvati for Renhive said «Mantua can become the European pivot of this market sector, thanks to important partnerships and collaborations».
source: Gazzetta di Mantova
