The Ministry of the Environment and Energy Safety gave the Official green light to the project of bridge On the Strait of Messina, as announced by the Minister of Infrastructure Matteo Salvini. In a note from Mit, the vice premier defined the Mase ok “a news of extraordinary importance” and “another fundamental step forward”.
The bridge is part of the largest plan of strengthening of the infrastructure of Southern Italy and the European Ten-T network. According to Salvini, after passing the latest technical visas, the construction sites should start “by the summer” 2025.
Bridge on the Strait, the project enters the operational phase
The confirmation of the Mase marks the completion of the environmental preliminary phase of the project. Previously, in 2024 the Ministry had requested about 239 documentary additions, subsequently transmitted by Strait of Messina Spa, the CEO Pietro Ciucci underlined that the final project was updated according to current regulations and that the costs are “transparent, without risk of unfinished”.
With the Ok of the Cipess (Interministerial Committee) of March 2025 to the final project, as explained by the same Ciucci (CEO of the Strait of Messina Spa), “the financial plan has been approved” and shows that the work is “Completely financed”.
The government also highlights the expected benefits for the territory: Salvini spoke of a “Incredible economic induced” And of a new flywheel for transport, hoping that the high speed reaches Reggio Calabria. To guarantee regularity and transparency, an anti -mafia supervisory body was established on the works, with prefectures and local institutions to monitor the execution.
Bridge on the Strait: how much it costs and who finances the work
The bridge project has a total cost of approx 13.5 billion euros. The 2025 budget law has allocated 13.532 billion, divided between various sources.
According to official data, the financial coverage is divided as follows: C
- about 6.96 billion from the state budget;
- 4.6 billion from national development and cohesion funds (FSC);
- 1.6 billion from FSC dedicated to Sicily and Calabria;
- 370 million of the capital increase of Strait of Messina Spa.
These resources cover the entire cost of the work, estimated on updated base, without additional charges compared to the financial plans already provided. The bridge includes a central span of over 3 km with two 400 meters towers and integrated road and railway connections, dimensions and characteristics that make it the longest suspended infrastructure in the world.
Employment and GDP: the economic impact of the bridge over southern Italy
An analysis commissioned by Unioncamere Sicilia (Uniontrasporti/Opened Economics) estimates that during the construction phase the bridge will generate a contribution of 23.1 billion euros per GDP and about 36,700 stable jobs. The study also speaks of a current positive positive value of 1.8 billion (beneficial/costs ratio 1.2) and over 10.3 billion of higher tax revenues for the state thanks to the work.
When they begin and how long the work of the bridge over the Strait of Messina last
Now the bureaucratic process is almost over. The next formal step will be the publication of the environmental compatibility decree, followed by the executive contract to entrust the works. If everything proceeds according to the plans, as announced by Minister Salvini, the works should start In the summer of 2025.
According to ministerial estimates, the construction site will last about seven years, during which works of railway and road connection will also be built at urban centers.
The infrastructure fits into the transe European corridor “Scandinavo-Mediterraneo” as the last piece of a puzzle designed deceived and relying between enthusiasm and perplexity. More than a promise, for the South it could become a tangible logistics lever. If it really goes out, the bridge will return a less decorative and more operational place to the South in the continental transport map.
