Italy plans $2.2 bln fund to support key supply chains
02/08/2023 18:51
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Fund could have at least 2 bln euros at its disposal
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It would be able to invest in Italian listed firms
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PM Meloni seeks to boost extraction of raw materials
By Giuseppe Fonte and Angelo Amante
ROME, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Italy plans to set up a fund
with at least 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) at its disposal to
bolster strategically important supply chains, a draft bill seen
by Reuters showed.
The "Made in Italy" fund will have an initial endowment of
700 million euros in 2023 and an additional 300 million next
year in state cash.
But the bill, yet to be made official, shows Rome is also
planning to raise at least an additional billion euros from
other sources outside the public administration.
A previous draft reported by Reuters in May envisaged 500
million euros from private investors.
State-controlled groups including Cassa Depositi e Prestiti
(CDP) could inject resources in the fund, a government official
said.
Separate sources have previously told Reuters that Prime
Minister Giorgia Meloni is courting sovereign wealth funds from
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan and
Norway to add to the fund's firepower.
The scheme would support companies operating in key supply
chains, while also aiming to boost procurement and reuse of
"critical raw materials".
Meloni's government has made it a priority to extract more
such materials at home to ensure local industry becomes less
reliant on imports from countries such as China.
"Italy counts 16 among the 34 raw materials considered
critical by the European Union," Industry Minister Adolfo Urso
said on Monday.
"These are necessary for the dual transition, ecological and
digital, which is crucial for Italian industry to be more
independent in the production of electric batteries and solar
panels," he added.
Italy is working within the framework of the European
Union's Critical Raw Materials Act, a centrepiece of the EU
strategy to ensure its industry can compete with the United
States and China in making clean tech products and accessing the
necessary raw materials.
Rome could also use the planned fund to buy stakes in listed
companies headquartered in Italy but outside the financial
sector, the draft bill showed.
The bill received approval from state auditors at the
Treasury and is now expected to be formally presented to
parliament.
Once it has entered into force, the government will issue a
separate decree defining how the fund will work and how to
appoint its managing company, which would receive 2.5 million
euros in annual fees, according to the draft.
($1 = 0.9143 euros)
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte and Angelo Amante
Editing by Mark Potter)
((giuseppe.fonte@thomsonreuters.com; +390680307711;))