The four ports managed by the Ports of Genoa recorded a new all-time high in TEU in 2025, approaching the 3m mark. Despite this growth, rail freight suffered a significant decline, primarily due to temporary capacity restrictions caused by infrastructure works.
The port authority oversees the ports of Genoa, Prà, Savona and Vado Ligure, which together handled 2,999,486 TEU in 2025. This represents a 6.3% increase on 2024 and sets a new record.
Much of the growth came from the ports of Savona and Vado Ligure, which together handled around 590,000 TEU, an exceptional rise of 58.4% compared with the previous year. The main hub remains the port of Genoa, which managed roughly 2.4 million TEU, 1.6% fewer than in 2024.
Rail freight struggles
The growth in total TEU did not translate into higher rail freight volumes for the Ports of Genoa. The number of trains fell by 14.2% to 7,935, while TEU carried by rail dropped 11.6% to 322,451. The modal share of rail freight stood at 13.2%, “two percentage points lower compared to 2024,” the port authority said. Some positive news came from non-containerised cargo, which grew by 17% in 2025, driven largely by new services launched from Savona.
Waiting for the Terzo Valico
One project expected to boost rail freight is the Terzo Valico. The new infrastructure will link Genoa and its ports with Tortona through a tunnel system that will include the longest rail tunnel in Italy. After numerous delays, the opening is anticipated in the next couple of years. The project will finally provide one of Italy’s most important ports with a modern rail connection to the Rhine-Alpine TEN-T Corridor, Europe’s key logistics axis.
