STRUCTURAL FACTORS FOR A THIRD-GENERATION PORT: PLANNING INTERVENTIONS FOR AGRI-FOOD LOGISTICS IN GIOIA TAURO, ITALY

Ports play a decisive role in the economic system of countries, but also in the economy of the territory where they are located, acting as gates for the exchange of people and goods. Gioia Tauro is one of the main commercial ports in Italy, located in Calabria, Today, it is specialized in container transhipment operations and it has a great expansion capacity to become a third-generation port. In Calabria, there is a demand for logistics relating to different sectors present in the regional economy; however, this demand remains unsatisfied due to the presence of different problems. The agri-food sector, in particular, is one of the most important in Calabria and it is a distinctive element of regional productions. The main problems hindering the expansion of agri-food sector are: low innovation, small and poorly structured companies, limited availability of specific transport and logistics infrastructures. The completion of Gioia Tauro as third-generation port could allow to solving these problems and boost the regional agri-food sector, also in the context of improving the other economic sectors. This paper proposes an agri-food logistics scenario for Gioia Tauro as third-generation port, according to the Regional Transport Plan of Calabria and to the strategic report of the Integrated Logistics Area. The scenario is aimed to encourage the development and integration of existing supply chains, to enhance the Gioia Tauro hinterland in order to attract agri-food factories, operators, transport and logistics companies, encourage agri-food production for the local and the international markets. Furthermore, the paper proposes the set of planned interventions for the realization of the agri-food logistics scenario. These interventions are located in the hinterland of Gioia Tauro port, where there is a large industrial area suitable for the expansion of the sector. The interventions are mainly aimed at the realization of a cold-pole, and other related interventions.