Costa Cruises and the Ligurian Sea Port Authority have inaugurated the renovated Calata delle Vele cruise ship quay and Palacrociere terminal 1 in the historic port of Savona.
The ceremony was attended by the city’s mayor, Ilaria Caprioglio, the Liguria Region president, Giovanni Toti, the president of the Western Ligurian Sea Port Authority, Paolo Emilio Signorini, and the president of Costa Cruises Neil Palomba. In keeping with tradition, the ceremony was also blessed by Mons. Angelo Monaco.
In total Costa Cruises and the Western Ligurian Sea Port Authority have invested around 22 million euros in renovating the quay and terminal in Savona.
The work has adapted the main cruise ship quay to the requirements of the latest generation of ships. Costa Cruises has therefore regained access to its historic quay, where millions of passengers have regularly disembarked over the last fifteen years or so, making the Savona hub one of the busiest cruise ports in Italy and Europe.
Allowing the quay to accommodate the most recently built ships required the sea bed to be deepened from the initial -9 meters to -11, which involved reinforcing the quays.
The investment of 17 million euros made by the Western Ligurian Sea Port Authority fully respected the project timetable for the arrival of the Costa Diadema.
Costa Cruises has invested a total of almost 5 million euros in the adaptation work on the Palacrociere terminal. This included a reorganization of the entrance hall, rebuilding the reception desk and extending the area used for security checks. To help regulate the flow of passengers part of the terrace was covered with a glass structure. This area will be used as an access zone for cruise passengers in transit. All signage has been completely replaced and a connecting bridge built between the two higher floors.
The biggest investment is related to the two “fingers”, the suspended walkways that connect the terminal to the ship. These glass and metal structures weigh 96 tonnes, measure 30 x 10 meters and are 18 meters high.
Furthermore, in order to regulate the flow of pedestrians more efficiently and safely along Via Gramsci in Savona, close to the crossing opposite the dockyard, Costa Cruises will fund the purchase and installation of a new “on demand” traffic light system.
The work on the quay and the Palacrociere terminal 1 was carried out ahead of the arrival of Costa Smeralda, the new flagship that will be calling at Savona every Saturday from December 21, 2019.
Costa Smeralda is a real turning point in minimizing environmental impact because it is fueled, both in port and at sea, by liquefied natural gas (LNG), the cleanest fossil fuel in the world. Using LNG allows sulfur oxide and particulate emissions to be almost completed eliminated, significantly reducing nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide as well.