MILAN, July 25, 2019 – Salini Impregilo’s presence in Australia is increasing as orders from the country contributed 12% of the Group’s total backlog early this year from 1.5% previously, thanks to strategic mega hydroelectric projects like Snowy 2.0. Its work is also gaining recognition. After a prize received for its work on the Forrestfield-Airport Link in Perth in early July, it received another one for excellence in infrastructure from the New South Wales branch of the Concrete Institute of Australia for the skytrain bridge and viaduct that it built for Sydney Metro Northwest.

The investment that Salini Impregilo is doing in Australia, especially in the hydroelectric and sustainable mobility sectors, is seen in its hiring and training. It is sponsoring a scholarship for students at the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology and the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). Salini Impregilo’s partnership with UTS also manifested itself in November 2018 with the presentation of the report “Flexible Cities. The Future of Australian Infrastructure” by the Economist Intelligence Unit with contributions from UTS academics.

The Sydney Metro Northwest is the first part of Sydney Metro, a new metro network that is the biggest transport infrastructure project in the country. For Sydney, it is the biggest since the construction of the Harbour Bridge nearly a century ago. The hallmark of the line, the skytrain viaduct connecting the Bella Vista and Rouse Hill areas is four kilometres long and includes a 270-metre-long curved cable stay bridge. The Group’s contribution to the project saw it receive the “2018 Project of the Year” from the Engineering News-Record (ENR) magazine for excellence in innovation as well as its attention to sustainability in terms of health and safety and the benefits it has brought to the local community.

But the Group is working on other big projects, seizing the opportunities created by the country’s strategy to invest in infrastructure, especially in transport and the production of clean energy. Hydroelectricity, in which Salini Impregilo is a world leader, is a sector that is destined to grow in the coming years.

One key project that was awarded in early 2019 to the Future Generation joint-venture (65% owned by Salini Impregilo and 35% by Clough) is Snowy 2.0, which will expand the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme managed by Snowy Hydro. It will increase by 2,000 megawatts (MW) the production capacity, which stands at 4,100 MW. Salini Impregilo will link the Tantangara and Talbingo dams by means of a series of tunnels. It will also build a power station with pumping stations nearly a kilometre underground.

Another of Salini Impregilo’s projects is in Perth, the fourth biggest city of Australia that faces the risk of heavy traffic congestion and greater air pollution as its population is set to grow from 2.0 million to 3.5 million by 2030. The Group is working on the Forrestfield-Airport Link that will be a light rail line some 8.5 kilometres long connecting suburbs with the city centre. The project will help Perth maintain its high quality of life and create 2,000 direct jobs among locals and foreigners from 27 countries. Some 16% of the total are women.