Fs: Strisciuglio appointed as new chief executive

The board of directors has been dissolved and a new board will be formed for the three-year period 2026–2028, to be led by Gianpiero Strisciuglio. Thirteen days after the resignation of Stefano Donnarumma, the FS Group is moving forward: this is the decision of the shareholders’ meeting of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (of which the Ministry of Economy and Finance is the sole shareholder), which confirmed Tommaso Tanzilli as chairman and called on the new board of directors to appoint the current CEO of Trenitalia as head of the group. The appointment was made immediately afterwards during the first meeting of the board of directors.

The new board of directors comprises, in addition to Tanzilli and Strisciuglio, Pietro Bracco, Franco Fenoglio and Loredana Ricciotti (all former members of the outgoing board). Two new members complete the board: Silvia Marzot (a member of Trenitalia’s board of directors) and the MEF executive Daniela Rota.

With the Donnarumma era brought to a premature end, the majority rejected the idea of simply replacing the manager whilst allowing the board of directors to continue until its natural expiry next year, and instead opted for the internal appointment favoured by the Minister for Infrastructure, Matteo Salvini.

Strisciuglio, who has been tipped as the favourite to take the top job at FS from the outset, has a 25-year career in the railways: he previously headed RFI and currently holds the same position at Trenitalia. He will be taking the helm during the busiest period for rail transport – the summer holiday season – following months marked by service disruptions and delays. The network will have to cope with numerous ongoing construction projects, whilst the completion of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) works looms on the horizon.

The top appointments at the two subsidiaries, RFI and Trenitalia, will be announced at a later date. The issue is also political and is said to concern, in particular, the replacement of Strisciuglio at the helm of Trenitalia. The possible solutions emerging from the rumours are all internal, starting with the CEO of FS Logistix, Sabrina De Filippis, who is said to be FDI’s preferred choice. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT) is said to favour an internal promotion within Trenitalia of the Director of High-Speed Rail, Simone Gorini, or the Technical Director, Domenico Scida. As for RFI, Aldo Isi is expected to be confirmed in his role.