More than an on-site inspection, it was a recognition of a successful achievement. Moreover, it didn’t take long to accomplish, if we consider the temporary setback due to the problem of the hydraulic seal of one of the two wells at the end of the underground tunnel.
The visit to the worksite this morning by the president of the Port Network Authority, Luciano Guerrieri, and the mayor of Livorno, Luca Salvetti, is as close as it can get to an inauguration. In fact, the only thing missing was the ribbon cutting. And for a simple reason: the static testing is yet to be carried out. It will be performed tomorrow by engineer Antonio Riccardi. A few more hours, then, and the new infrastructure will formally become operational.
“We are almost there now,” said Mr. Guerrieri, who did not fail to praise the ability of his technicians and the private companies that over the last have worked flat out to achieve this goal. Livorno Port’s leading figure also highlighted the complexity of the operation and stressed its strategic importance: “It’s a fundamental step for our port’s short-term strategies.”
The reason for this is soon said. By next week, the underground tunnel will be handed over to ENI, which will have the task of removing the pipes that run from the Darsena Petroli oil terminal to the refinery, crossing the access channel at the Marzocco Tower. This is no small feat, considering the fact that those pipes now limit this section of the canal, making it difficult for large ships to enter and leave.
Once the laying of the new pipes has been completed, it will be possible to reshape the Canal and widen the navigable section from the current 70 meters (at the narrowest point) to 120 meters along the two banks. This is a vitally important contract, which the Port Network Authority’s technical director, Enrico Pribaz, expects to be able to have ready for tendering as early as June, together with the work on the Marzocco Tower. “To complete the widening of the two banks we will have to wait for ENI to move the pipes, but, in the meantime, we can bring some work forward,” Mr. Pribaz said.
The mayor expressed his deep satisfaction for the substantial completion of the project: “Seeing it completed is incredible” – he said – “It is a top geo-technical engineering project, which the port has been waiting for for a long time. The microtunnel is essential. Together with the Darsena Europa and the railway overpass towards the Vespucci freight village , it will ensure that the port remains at the heart of the dynamics of world trade and the Mediterranean.”
Translation by Giles Foster
