Merlon retort to the Spanish harbour community: without transhipment Genoa it is the eighth European port



The new media strategy of the president of the Harbour Authority of Genoa, than - according to malicious voices - is time to prepare the future politician of Luigi Merlo in sight of the next conclusion of its second and last mandate for the guide of the harbour agency, seems to trace that of the Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, to which - it is manifest - many from Liguria politicians they are inspired in order to get ahead the renewal of the centre-left.

Draft to answer blow on blow to the adversary. If the Renzi heavyweight class improvvidamente decides to go up on the boxing ring for boxare with the "Economist", winning featherweight and therefore for manifest susceptibility and tracotanza of avails again, Merlon has the good taste to choose an adversary of pairs category: the governmental agency for the ports of Spain.

It is unknown who has organized the encounter. Puertos of the Estado did not seem disposed to giving itself to the noble sport art and it was not in looks for neither of boxers neither of sparring partner. The first round - so singularly it is intended in this anomalous summer - is begun with the article that we have published ten days ago on the presence of the first four Spanish ports in top 120 of the world-wide ports ( on 22 August 2014).

Some moderate protoleghista has accused our daily paper to play into the hands of the Iberian portualità. Of sport, evidently, draft. The blow low of Puertos of the Estado, at least so is accused by Italian part, is not to have that is sufficiently evidenced that the volumes enlivened from the Spanish portualità are elevated thanks to the consisting quota of transfers put into effect in the national ports of call, transferring the containers from a ship to another. Not taking into consideration this activity, so-called of transhipment, - it is exactly the protest turned to the arbitrator from Merlon to the center of the square - Genoa scale it classifies it European.

Al first sound of the gong is this the text of the claim introduced officially to the judges of contest from the Harbour Authority of the capital of Liguria: "Genoa fourteenth port in Europe in 2013 for the containerized trade. But as it would change it classifies it if, as works in America, the traffic of final destination were estimated alone, considering therefore the ports as a direct service at the market of reference and not as spin platform? In terms of "billed containers", that is without to calculate the transhipment, Genoa would make a great jump forward. It would have closed the 2013 to the eighth place, a lot near the Havre and Valencia. And in 2014, seen the continental projections, it could legitimately aim at to the sixth square. This because Genoa has the quota more lowland of Europe than transhipment: 6.3% of the teu in 2013, given confirmed in 2014, very beneath of the quotas all other great ports, with figures that go from 15% of Barcelona to 50% of Valencia. The only port of call that is approached Genoa is Felixstowe, to 8%, not to case the British port of final destination for excellence. According to this system of calculation, Genoa would be the first port quickly after unattainable "the top five", the ports of call of the Northern Range: Rotterdam, Amburgo, Antwerp, Bremerhaven and, exactly, Felixstowe".

The judges have objected that Puertos of the Estado has emphasized that own the activity of transhipment is a peculiar characteristic of the Spanish ports to confirmation of their centrality regarding many of the main world-wide routes.

Perhaps become annoyed at the lacked acceptation own thesis, without to have obtained an official callback and not even a simple admonition, and for the outcome of the closed international encounter with a verdict of balancing for manifest disinterestedness by the public, Merlon has quickly decided to cross the gloves with national opposing imprecisato and to address therefore to the Italian Pugilistic Federation. There is who supports - and probably they are the malpensanti as above - than the defied one, this time, is none other than the current minister of Infrastructures and the Transports, Maurizio Lupi.
YEAR 2013 TOTAL TEU's T/S TEU'S FINAL IT AROUSES NATION % RAN- KING Rotterdam 11.621.249 4.172.028 7.449.221 35,9 1 Hamburg 9.300.000 2.790.000 6.510.000 30 2 Antwerp 8.578.269 2.487.698 6.090.571 29 3 Bremerhaven 5.809.455 2.602.635 5.546.820 44,8 4 Felixtowe 3.754.000 300.320 3.453.680 8 5 Valencia 4.327.838 2.162.620 2.165.218 49,7 6 The Havre 2.490.000 420.810 2.069.190 16,9 7 Genoa jib 1.988.013 125.245 1.862.768 6,3 8 Zeebrugge 2.026.270 508.594 1.517.676 25,1 9 Southampton 1.470.000 147.000 1.323.000 10 10 La Spezia 1.300.432 101.434 1.199.000 7,8 11 *Marseille Fos 1.097.740 164.661 933.079 15 12 Piraeus 3.163.755 2.530.104 632.751 80 13 Las Palmas 1.055.752 601.779 453.973 57 14 Algeciras 4.349.755 3.945.227 404.528 90,7 15 Gioia Tauro 3.087.395 2.716.908 370.487 88 16 Malta Freeport: 2.750.000 2.612.500 137.500 95 17 *Stima (Fonte: Harbour authority of Genoa)
“Seen the optimal results achieved from the genoese harbour community, that they could become extraordinary if they resumed the internal consumption, and to light of the experience of these years - it has
asserted Merlon - I am convinced that with some provisions of simplification, sburocratizzazione and organizational efficientamento, legacy to the phenomenon of naval gigantism, our increase could be ulteriorly increased. In order to reach this scope and with fine exclusively collaborated, in order to contribute to you to the increase of the Country - it has announced the challenger - I am elaborating a package of norms “unblocks ports” that within the september month I will transmit to government and parliament. They will be norms to cost zero, than they will not certainly interfere on the choices of governance, that they are of competence of the institutions roman: but much Harbour and operating Authority could help”.

The “aims exclusively collaborated to you” and to want “to contribute to the increase of the Country” are not enough, seem, to attenuate the provocative tone to us of proclaim of Cassius Clay Merlo. The project in order to unblock the ports is the strong point of minister Lupi in the within of the widest program “Unblocks Italy” of the government.

Saying incidentally and softly: we confess not to have well understood own good what is to make a provision in order to unblock the ports in the governmental plan of the priority participations thesis to save the Country. But this is another history and very more important. The Italian ports, precipuamente those of final destination, live and prosper if the national economy survives and grows.

Saving the Italian economy it is sure to assure a healthy future also to these ports. But they are not enough proclaim. Sul boxing ring not is the time to lick an ice cream. There are alone sweat and blood.

Bruno Bellio