The newly appointed chief of Ferrovie dello Stato, Italy's national railway company, has announced that the organization will explore options for attracting external investment, including the possibility of listing the company on the stock exchange, a move that would align with the Italian government's broader privatization efforts.

Last September, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government unveiled a plan to manage Italy's public debt, including a privatization initiative to generate approximately 20 billion euros ($21.6 billion) between 2024 and 2026.

The country's public debt is the second-highest in the eurozone relative to its gross domestic product and is projected to reach about 140 percent of GDP by 2026.

In an interview with Reuters on the weekend, the railway company's CEO Stefano Donnarumma indicated listing on the Borsa Italiana stock exchange was one option under consideration as the business seeks to attract new capital and fund future investments.

"I am ready to consider opening up the company's capital to investors ... a bourse listing is usually a consequence of such a process. I wouldn't speak of flotation per se, but of opening up the capital," he said from the sidelines of the TEHA business forum.

Reflecting on his tenure as CEO of power grid operator Terna Group, Donnarumma highlighted the advantages of private investment in a regulated infrastructure.

He noted that his experience had shown him the value of having private shareholders, particularly in their ability to contribute to funding for new investments.

"It's not an obligation, the decision is the state's to take. And it's not like I've been brought in to oversee a privatization," he said. 

"It was studied before my arrival, and I plan to go over that study in the coming weeks, as we work on our strategy and see how it fits with them. The management's job is to come up with strategies and propose them. The shareholder will decide."

Donnarumma said he expects to have more clarity about the group's direction toward the end of the year, but he added that the process of incorporating private investors would likely take two years.

In November, the Italian Treasury generated 920 million euros by divesting a 25-percent share in Monte dei Paschi di Siena bank.

Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti has previously indicated that portions of state-owned railway and motorway networks might also be put up for sale, said Reuters.

In December, Meloni said the Italian government's privatization plans would not result in state assets being sold off cheaply.

"We have launched a privatization plan, but let's be clear: with this government, these will never become sell-offs," Meloni said.