Team Finland network is organizing a business delegation visit to Italy (Turin and Milan) on 3-5 May, 2022. The visit is led by Mr. Ville Skinnari, Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade.
Italy´s G7 economy is expected to grow at record speed this year. The EU recovery fund (RRF) allocation and the surging private sector demand create business opportunities for Finnish companies. The Lombardy and Piedmont regions, and their well-known capitals Milan and Turin are Italian economic powerhouses. Both purchasing power and industrial structure are significant and they connect easily with France, Switzerland and Germany.
Strong regional mobility clusters and system-integrators are interested in partnering up with Finnish companies to improve their product and service portfolio for big tenders. Milan has been granted EU recovery funds (RRF) worth of 10.3 million EUR to test AI powered integrated mobility solutions, combining a vast array of transport modes. This opportunity is open now.
The Turin-based automotive industry is investing billions in electromobility, smart automotive solutions and design and it´s looking for suitable high-end vendors to help them on this journey. Both Milan and Turin are about to launch EU Recovery fund (RRF) induced investment projects to reduce traffic jams, manage logistical flows and drastically reduce emissions. A flagship example is a project on Intermodal hydrogen powered railway system in Piedmont.
The itinerary includes visiting Stellantis Group, which is the home of world known car brands such as Fiat, Alfa Rome, Jeep and Chrysler. Stellantis aims to be the industry champion in climate change mitigation, becoming carbon net zero by 2038, with a 50% reduction by 2030. Taking a leadership role in decarbonization, as well as a decisive step forward in the circular economy, is our contribution to a sustainable future. The ambitious goal of this automotive giant is that 100% of sales in Europe and 50% of sales in the United States to be battery electric vehicles (BEVs) by the end of this decade.
Circular Economy is one of the focus areas of Italy's Green Transition. A whopping 68.6 billion EUR will be allocated to improve the sustainability and resilience of the economic system and ensure a fair and inclusive environmental transition.
The EU recovery fund allocation is 2.1 billion EUR for improving the entire value chain of waste management, out of which 1.5 billion go the modernization and setting up of recycling plants and infrastructure and 600 million(?) EUR for various flagship projects. New sustainable solutions, technologies and business models are needed. As an example, The Piedmont region plans to open tenders for improving the waste management processes of plastics, cardboard and textiles.
Waste-to-energy offers opportunities within automotive industry (batteries), textiles and construction material. New business models for better sustainability in recycling of industrial materials, creating value added products and services are needed.
During this visit there will be meetings with regional green cluster representatives who will share their initiatives and system integrators explaining how they choose their partners. The two regions are wealthy, meaning that it is not all about public tenders but also B2B. Both in Lombardia and Piedmont the academia has centres of excellence in sustainability, opening good opportunities for R&DI joint projects, too.
Who should attend?
This visit is aimed for Finnish companies that are already present in Italy or actively pursuing Italy in their international development strategy, and representatives of the Finnish flagship solutions and technologies in automotive industry, smart mobility (intelligent transport), circular economy focusing on for example waste management, recycling plants.
The delegation program in Turin and Milan will consist of sectoral meetings with an occasion to present the Finnish solutions to Milan and Turin Smart city officials. During the visit delegates will have a possibility to meet local stakeholders.
We are closely following the Covid-19 travel restrictions and possible upcoming changes related to them. Kindly note that all delegates are required to have proof of two vaccinations to be able to take part in the visit program.
Kindly see detailed program below.
Participation fee
To cover the expenses of arranging the visit, Business Finland will charge a participation fee.
- Micro Businesses and SMEs: 1350 EUR + 24% VAT per person
- Major Companies: 1550 EUR + 24% VAT per person
Business Finland will invoice the participation fee after the visit based on the actual costs. The invoiced fee will not exceed the amounts mentioned above. Kindly note that the participation fee does not include flights or accommodation of the participant nor meals outside the business delegation program.
