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It has come to a new ultimatum. Now the government has no intention of giving more time. What is about to begin is considered by the executive to be the decisive week: if by Wednesday 30 September no concrete answers arrive from Atlantia, their concession for the motorway network will be revoked. “They took back everything they had signed on July 14, that’s enough”, we learn from government sources who guarantee the compactness of the executive in this sense. But not that within the parties and this could still reserve some surprises.
The decision to go ahead with the revocation of the concession came during a night summit at Palazzo Chigi between Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri and Transport Minister Paola De Micheli. “The situation is compromised”, is what emerged. The technicians were also present at the table: Alberto Stancanelli for the MIT, Luigi Carbone for the Mef and Roberto Chieppa for the presidency of the Council. The rumors that told of a commissioner by Conte towards Minister De Micheli were categorically denied by the premier’s staff, also because all the departments that have the dossier in hand would agree on the path to take. In the Democratic Party, however, there are different nuances and Italia Viva, for example, has always said that it is against. Suffice it to recall the amendment presented last January to the Milleproroghe decree to stop the rule on the revocation of the concession.
And a few days ago, on September 24 for the government yet another cold shower has arrived. When the Board of Directors of Atlantia approved the start of the process for the disposal of the investment in Autostrade per l’Italia. In particular, it launched the ‘dual track’ process: sale of the entire 88% stake in Aspi through a competitive process or, alternatively, partial and proportional demerger and contribution of 55% and 33% of the share capital of Aspi in the newly formed Autostrade Concessioni e Costruzioni Spa to be listed on the Stock Exchange with the exit of Atlantia from its capital.
The problem is the competitive process, it is this step that does not respect the July agreements, which provide for the exit of the Benettons and the transfer of the shares to Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. The culmination of that long night of negotiations contemplated a delayed exit of Atlantia from Aspi, within one year, the entry of Cdp and the listing of the company on the Stock Exchange. On that occasion, Atlantia said it was willing to directly sell its entire stake in Aspi, equal to 88%, to Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and institutional investors “of its choice”.
Now the way of revocation, of course, remains “difficult” to follow, as the majority themselves admit. However, the government has two other tools to use: on the one hand, the green light for the Economic and Financial Plan (Pef), which was sent to the Transport Authority in recent days but has not yet been approved – and which could block or at least complicate a possible transaction carried out by Atlantia – on the other hand, if deemed necessary, also the exercise of Golden Power, should Autostrade put on the market risk ending up with foreign investors without public supervision.
In short, the margins are getting thinner and thinner. In the executive, there are still those who trust in the possibility of finding a solution, but time is running out and the possibility that the negotiation could be wrecked is now one step away. Meanwhile, on Tuesday 29 September, one day before the expiry of the executive’s ultimatum – but also of the deadline indicated by the CDP to keep the table open – an Aspi Board of Directors had already convened to analyze the response to be sent to the government. At the same time, the debate within the majority is open.
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