Turin: Multinationals’ investments in Piedmont are growing.

In Piedmont they are present 1.300 foreign multinationals, equal to 10% of the national total, with 4.381 local units and 150 thousand employees, values ​​that place Piedmont in third place in Italy for foreign-controlled companies. From an analysis carried out by Unioncamere Piemonte and the Turin Chamber of Commerce which involved 225 multinational enterprises, 8% of which are large, employing approximately 25 thousand workers, it emerges that 83% of foreign multinationals present in Piedmont want to confirm their presence for the current three-year period (2024-2026).

12% want to expand or diversify while 3% intend to lighten or reconfigure their presence in the Piedmont region. Only 2% intend to close their business. These figures were the focus of the event 'The value of foreign multinationals in Piedmont' at the Circolo dei Lettori in Turin, organized by Confindustria Piemonte, Unioncamere Piemonte, Turin Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with the Foreign Business Observatory of Confindustria and Luiss and with the contribution of Bper.

"To compete globally, Italy must present itself as a unique country, capable of highlighting its regional excellence within a unitary and shared strategy. The territories represent an essential resource, but it is equally crucial to integrate them into a national and European vision. This approach is essential to strengthen our identity as an authoritative member of the European Union and a privileged destination for foreign investments, which already contribute to 21% of national turnover and 35,1% of exports. Only effective coordination between institutional levels and industrial policies can fully enhance the country's potential, allowing us to address the digital and green transitions and attract global capital and skills, which are essential for our economic future.He said Barbara Cimmino, Vice President for Exports and Foreign Investment Attraction of Confindustria.

"We need to evaluate successful experiences and opportunities for improvement, to incorporate them into future projects. At the same time, we need to ask ourselves – explains Pierpaolo Antonioli, who has been president of the Multinational Commission of Confindustria Piemonte since September - on the contents of future Memorandums of Understanding working with the Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces to arrive at the signature of a shared document that provides the general guidelines for all territories. This program at the local level must be expressed in operational projects with defined deadlines and ambitious but achievable plans".

Going beyond the mere numerical data, Multinational enterprises in Piedmont represent a significant component of the regional economy, thanks to their ability to attract investments, create jobs and promote innovation and invest in environmental sustainability. They therefore play a driving role in the technology transfer process, thanks to relationships with SMEs, research centres, training centres and local institutions.

"Piedmont, which has always been a land of industries and entrepreneurs, has attracted many multinational companies over the years, which have chosen to invest in our territory, bringing with them know-how, advanced technologies and new development opportunities. These companies represent a fundamental engine for our economy, generating quality employment, promoting innovation and helping to strengthen our competitiveness at an international level. Over 3 out of 4 multinationals interviewed by our survey have made investments in Piedmont and in the three-year period 2021-2023, while 83% of the foreign multinationals present have declared that they intend to confirm their presence for the current three-year period. This can only make us proud and further stimulate us to work to create an increasingly favorable environment for investments, simplifying bureaucratic procedures, strengthening infrastructure and investing in training and research" commented Dario Gallina, President of the Turin Chamber of Commerce and Vice President of Unioncamere Piemonte.

Returning to the analysis by Unioncamere Piemonte and the Turin Chamber of Commerce, 48% of the multinationals interviewed declared that they increased their turnover in 2023 compared to 2022, 29% increased their staff, three out of four multinationals made investments in our region in the three-year period 2021-2023. However, this incidence drops to less than 1 in 3 if we look at the sample of manufacturing companies. 67% of the turnover is generated by domestic demand (15% in Piedmont), 20% from Europe and 13% from the rest of the world. Again from the analysis conducted by the chamber of commerce, the main strengths include the quality of life, the presence of intermodal logistics hubs and goods storage, the availability of ICT infrastructures, the geographical position and the quality of the training system.

Bureaucratic procedures represent the main criticality, followed by the availability of adequate public incentives and an inflexible labor market. Finally, more than one in two multinationals considers support for identifying incentives useful or very useful, just under one in two would like to receive support in finding the staff they need, while 16% ask for support for visa issuing procedures.

To take stock and comment on the data, a round table was held with the participation of Patrick De Vismes, President of Kering Italia, Stefano Lorenzon, Director of the Coca-Cola Hbc plant in Biella, Giuseppe Pedretti, CEO of Petronas Lubricants International, Fabio Pammolli, President of the Ai4Industry Foundation, Candido Pirri, Vice-Rector for the Development of the Research Model and Infrastructures of the Polytechnic University of Turin and Andrea Tronzano, Councilor for Internationalization and Investment Attraction of the Piedmont Region. The morning ended with a speech by the President of the Piedmont Region, Alberto Cirio.