IV Railway Package: New opportunities for Italian companies to be involved in the EU railway single market

Steer Davies Gleave’s Marco Concari contributed to a workshop organised by Fondazione BNC in Rome discussing the implications for Italy of the IV Railway Package, currently under scrutiny by the European Council.

Marco illustrated the contents of the proposal licensed by the European Commission and the contribution of  Steer Davies Gleave in the preparation of the new railway package, along with other work SDG has undertaken in the past ten years with both the European Commission and the European Parliament in shaping the EU rail policy.

Representatives of the Italian national transport authority and national competition authority, major railway companies (FS and Arriva) and regional authorities in charge of the provision of regional railway services also took part in the workshop and contributed to the debate.

Some of the key points made by Steer Davies Gleave to the attention of the workshop participants were:

• The presence of an intense debate at the EU level on the text to be adopted. Marco reminded the audience that the version currently under scrutiny by the European Council is the one licensed by the European Parliament introducing a number of amendments to the version proposed by the Commission, including a deferral of the deadline for the introduction of competitive tendering for the provision of railway services subject to public service obligations
• The presence of a wider consensus across the EU on the importance and contents of the technical pillar of the railway package, which should ensure interoperability and help create a common playing field for rail operators in the single market
• The existence of different positions with respect to issues related to the governance of the sector (in particular, the separation between infrastructure managers and railway operators), the procurement of railway services subject to public service obligations and the rules regarding open access

Marco also discussed the potential implications of the IV railway package for Italy, pointing out that:

• given the more advanced stage Italy has in the process of liberalization of the railway sector, compared to other countries, the overall impact should be limited, although the transposition of the text to be adopted will certainly require work to review and amend the existing Italian legislative framework;
• the process of further market opening driven by this package should lead to the rising of further opportunities across the EU which Italian operators could certainly apply to take forward in coming years

For more information, please contact Marco Concari, marco.concari@sdgworld.net