The Hungarian Government has transferred its Adria Port project at Trieste, Italy, to the Ministry of Transport and Investments for review, the ministry told local news outlet Telex recently.
The ministry said it is assessing the investment’s financial and technical basis alongside its market prospects, and that, “any decision can only be made after this review has been completed.”
No withdrawal or cancellation has been announced, and a decision is expected in the coming weeks. The review comes as Italian-funded marine works advance while work on Adria Port’s planned landside investment has yet to begin.
The Port System Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea is carrying out the marine works with Italian public funds. Adria Port, the Hungarian state-owned project company, plans to develop the separate 32-hectare landside platform.
The first stage works also involve deepening the access channel to about 11.7 metres and installing two mooring dolphins alongside a 245-metre quay and about 8,000 square metres of operational area. Around €45 million (US$51 million) has been allocated under Italy’s National Complementary Plan, alongside further funds for dredging.
Design procurement is under way for the second phase, which would add about 16,000 square metres of operational space by the water and a quay measuring 356.4 metres.
The authority’s timetable places testing of the second phase works in the final quarter of 2029, although the design process could lead to changes. Adria Port’s published terminal plans call for operations to begin in 2028, with a 650-metre quay and road and rail connections.
Hungary announced its acquisition of the site in 2019, and the deal closed at the end of 2020. The transaction included a roughly 300-metre coastal strip under a 60-year concession. The former refinery requires remediation before it can serve as an operating terminal.
