Sicily, innovation projects worth 484 million: cleantech first by value
Out of 52 applications in the Step Notice, which has a budget of 321 million, 62% of the investments are in clean technologies. Digital first in number of projects but with lower average tickets, 30% of the value from companies based outside the region
by Nino Amadore
Key points
Fifty-two projects for a total value of about EUR 484 million. The Step (Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform) notice, financed under the Pr Fesr Sicilia 2021-2027, offers a precise snapshot of innovation on the island: widespread on the digital front, but driven - in terms of value - by energy and industrial transformation. The official regional data, processed by the Department of Productive Activities, of which Dario Cartabellotta is the director general, show that 52% of the instances concern digitech (27 projects), 36% cleantech (19 projects) and 10% biotech (5 projects), with 2% of classifications not available. However, looking at the distribution of investments, the picture changes: cleantech concentrates 62% of the total value (EUR 298.8 million), digitech 34% (EUR 164 million) and biotech 4% (EUR 21.8 million). Overall, Step data indicate that Sicilian innovation is mainly driven by the transformation of existing industry: energy, materials, agro-industry, circular economy. Digital is growing as a lever for modernisation, but the mass of investments is concentrated on the energy transition. Almost half a billion euro of candidate projects represents a significant response from the production system: the challenge now will be to transform this mass of projects into structural growth, qualified employment, and lasting roots of technological skills in the territory.
The political and strategic framework
"With this notice," emphasises the President of the Sicilian Region, Renato Schifani, "we intend to put Sicily in the best possible position to respond to the challenge of competitiveness, focusing on new digital technologies and environmental protection. We support companies that focus on innovation to look to the future, through a judicious and strategic use of the resources of the Pr Fesr. It is a substantial financial commitment aimed at the production fabric, but one that also looks to the world of research and collaborations with international investors, as a sign of the openness of our entrepreneurial system and the attractiveness that our economy is demonstrating".
The regional councillor for production activities, Edy Tamajo, explains that 'with Step we want to support a modern industry capable of competing in international markets and to contribute concretely to the digital and energy transition of our economy. This significant response is a clear sign of business confidence in the region's industrial policies. We are creating the conditions to favour quality investments, capable of generating development, skilled employment, and new opportunities for the region'.
Eastern axis drives the transition
In territorial terms, a strong concentration emerges in the Catania-Messina-Siracusa axis, which represents the industrial heart of Sicily's transition. Messina intercepts over EUR 84 million between large digital projects and cleantech initiatives linked to the agro-industrial supply chain. Catania exceeds 82 million, combining energy, manufacturing and ICT. Syracuse stands at around 51 million, with a significant weight of interventions linked to the sustainable transformation of the energy industry. Overall, the eastern quadrant concentrates more than EUR 200 million in projects, confirming itself as a natural platform for the island's energy and industrial transition.
Almost 146 million from outside Sicily
A significant element concerns the presence of companies based outside the island. An analysis of the applications submitted shows that approximately EUR 145.7 million in investments are made by applicants based in other Italian regions or abroad - including Lombardy, Latium, Veneto, Liguria, Campania and the Netherlands - accounting for almost 30% of the total value of the projects submitted. The most significant tickets include industrial and technological operators of national and international dimension, with interventions mainly in the cleantech and digitech sectors. The figure has a twofold reading: on the one hand, it signals a growing attractiveness of Sicily as a platform for industrial and technological investment, consistent with the requirement for projects to be implemented in the region; on the other, it raises the issue of the rooting of skills and technological ownership: the challenge will be to transform these investments into stable local supply chains, know-how transfer and lasting skilled employment.
