Japan PM backs troubled Sicily bridge plan, highlighting Japanese investment

By Angelo Amante

ROME, June 15 (Reuters) - Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Monday she hopes a long delayed project to build a bridge across Italy's Strait of Messina will get off the ground soon and showcase bilateral cooperation, given the involvement of Japanese companies.

The project to construct a 3.7-km (2.3-mile) bridge between the Sicilian city of Messina and mainland Italy is led by the Eurolink consortium, which includes Italy's largest construction group Webuild, Japan's IHI and Spain's Sacyr. But it has been held back for years by a number of problems, including criticism that a bridge could harm the environment and pose risks in an earthquake-prone area.

In 2012, the project was halted under a government austerity drive, prompting the consortium to file a €700 million ($811 million) compensation claim that will only be withdrawn if work resumes.

"I sincerely hope that the construction project for the Messina Strait Bridge, in which Japanese companies are participating, will become a landmark project symbolizing economic cooperation between our two countries," Takaichi said during a visit to Rome.

She was speaking alongside Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni after they held talks at ​the 17th-century Villa Doria Pamphili ahead of a Group of Seven (G7) summit in France, which they will both attend.

"I also hope that Japan's expertise and experience will contribute to its early realisation," Takaichi added.

Meloni's government argues that improved road and rail links are essential to boost economic growth in Italy's underdeveloped south. Sicily is currently connected to the mainland by ferries that carry vehicles and trains.

However, work on the bridge - estimated at around €13.5 billion - is unlikely to begin soon.

Italy's Court of Auditors last year declined to approve the project, citing doubts about its compliance with European Union competition rules and noting that the original 2005 tender priced it at just 3.8 billion euros.

In addition, prosecutors in Rome last week said they had opened a corruption probe into the bridge, casting fresh doubts over government efforts to push the project forward.

($1 = 0.8613 euros)

(Reporting by Angelo Amante in Rome; additional reporting by Tim Kelly in Tokyo; Editing by Susan Fenton)