Construction work has officially begun on the Adriatica Line , “the largest Italian gas transport project of the last ten years” as the operator Snam defined it with an expected investment of 2.5 billion euros .
The new gas pipeline network will be approximately 425 km long and starting from Sulmona it will connect to Minerbio , in the Bolognese area, crossing Abruzzo, Umbria, Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna.
The project is divided into five lots , all already contracted.
The first phase involves the laying of a 141 km methane pipeline between Sestino and Cesena: the construction sites for the first three sections will open at the end of April, while the remaining two, between Cesena and Minerbio, will open in June.
This first step also involves the construction of a compressor station in Sulmona, financed in part by the Pnrr with 375 million euros , which will be equipped with three 11 megawatt Hydrogen-Ready turbocompressors supplied by Baker Hughes .Commissioning is expected no earlier than 2026 .
Phase two of the Adriatic Line instead involves the construction of the Foligno-Sestino (tenders will be opened by the end of the year) and Sulmona-Foligno methane pipelines for a total length of 285 km .
According to estimates, the second phase will be completed in 2027 .