The North Tyrrhenian Port Network Authority (PNA) will be a key protagonist at the Biennale del Mare e dell’Acqua, the event promoted by Livorno Municipality that focuses on the city’s maritime vocation and people who have a passion for the sea in all its facets. During the three-day event, from 14th to 17th May, the PNA will be present at the Creative Hangars exhibition centre with a stand set up in partnership with Vespucci Freight Village.
Visitors will have the opportunity to try out state-of- the-art simulators and VR viewers to get to know and see the Network ports up close. There will also be an information area for anyone interested in learning about course programmes on offer at Pisa University’s Logistics Faculty in Livorno and at the Nautical & Logistics Higher Technical Institute.
The event also includes a wide variety of conferences, with highly distinguished guests.
On 15th May, from 9.30 a.m. to 1 p.m., on the Creative Hangars’ Main Stage, there will be a debate that will attempt to explore the strategic role of ports as catalysts of regional growth in the current economic and geopolitical context. The session, moderated by Alessandro Panaro, from SRM, will be divided into three panels. The first, focusing on infrastructure and port development, will feature the participation of the president of the Italian port association Assoporti, Rodolfo Giampieri, the editor of LIMES, Fabrizio Maronta, and the director of Uniontrasporti, Antonello Fontanili, the CEO of Mercitalia Shunting & Terminal, Livio Ravera, and, for the PNA, Roberta Macii, Darsena Europa deputy commissioner.
This will be followed by two other panels. One will be dedicated to logistics, intermodality and innovation, with Juan Manuel Díez Orejas, Senior Innovation Executive at Valencia Port Authority, Carmine America, CEO of Prima Sidera Startup, Giovanni Satta, associate professor at the University of Genoa, Flavia Melillo professor at the University of Salerno, and, for the PNA, Antonella Querci, Senior Executive in charge of Development, European Programmes and Innovation.
The second panel that will be held in the morning at 11.30 a.m. will focus on training and new professions, with Fabrizio Monticelli, CEO of ForMARE National Shipping Hub, Oliviero Baccelli, Director of the MEMIT Master Degree programme in Transport, Logistics and Infrastructure, Nicolò Berghinz, Head of Development, Public Affairs and Public Relations at ALIS, Nicola Castellano professor at the University of Pisa, and, for the PNA, Claudio Capuano, Senior Training & Promotion Executive.
The afternoon, from 2.30 p.m. to 6 p.m., will, instead, be dedicated to technological innovation and energy transition. There will be three panels of speakers aiming to provide an overview of the potential of hydrogen as a source of energy, exploring the current state of progress of types of technology available and their immediate applicability in ports, paying particular attention to the investments needed to launch the first stages of production and distribution.
These sessions will also touch on topics such as just how prepared shipowners are to adopt new green-hydrogen technologies and the crucial role of international partnerships in developing the hydrogen economy and port infrastructure in the Mediterranean. There will a number of international guests on the panels including the President of Egypt’s Maritime Transport Sector, Sherif Zakaria, DG Energy adviser, Tudor Constantinescu, and the Executive Director of the Clean hydrogen Partnership, Valerie Bouillon-DelPorte.
On 16th May, at 2.30 pm, Toscana Promozione Turistica will coordinate the session dedicated to coastal tourism. In particular, the second panel, dedicated to maritime tourism, cruises, and yachting, will be attended by, among others, Porto 2000, Livorno Municipality, Assoporti, the Porta a Mare company, and the PNA itself.
It will address topics of particular interest for a better understanding of the maritime tourism economy, its spin-offs, challenges and opportunities, from the awareness of the importance of the cruise industry, to the involvement of institutions and operators. The event, open to public administrators, representatives from organizations and associations, and local tourism, cruise and nautical operators will provide an opportunity for discussion and debate on topics of interest to specific local regional tourism-oriented areas.
After the introduction by Francesco Tapinassi, director of Toscana Promozione Turistica, Simone Gheri, director of Anci Toscana, will speak about the role of municipalities in coastal tourism. This will be followed by a conference dedicated to cruises and yachting. The president of Porta a Mare Spa, Simone Maltinti, the president of Porto 2000, Matteo Savelli, and city councilor for trade and tourism, Rocco Garufo, among others, will be taking part. At 4.30 p.m., the last afternoon panel will be devoted to the role of urban centres in the maritime tourism context, with the participation of the city councillor for urban planning, Silvia Viviani, and Jopsep Ejarque, who will be speaking about the tourism development program for Livorno, Genoa, Taranto, Ancona and Naples.
In addition, during the Biennale del Mare, a three-day initiative for schools will be held at Livorno’s Old Fortress, dedicated to learning about the maritime world. Organized by the Livorno Classica association, entitled ‘Elisir da mare’, it will be a moment of cultural and musical entertainment that will also actively involve secondary school students, entertaining local citizens with concerts, musical reviews, and much more.
“We are delighted to be able to actively participate in such a prestigious initiative. We have believed in its strategic importance right from the very beginning, confirming our willingness to sponsor the event and to organize a series of meetings and conferences dedicated to ports, logistics, training, cruises, and yachting,” said PNA special commissioner Luciano Guerrieri. “I would like to thank all our senior managers and employees whose work has provided the necessary support to ensure the success of the Biennale del Mare. Ports and blue economy activities are taking on an increasingly crucial role for the development of our local regional area. These events make us fully aware of this.”
Translation by Giles Foster
