🇮🇹 Italy · Taranto

Hotspot di Taranto

Reception centre Former business 📍 Area Portuale Varco Nord, Porto di Taranto, 74123 Taranto (TA), Puglia, Italy Capacity: 400 Converted: 2016

Was: A designated commercial logistics and parking sector within the northern gate (Varco Nord) of the operational Port of Taranto.

Hotspot di Taranto is a primary identification and first-reception facility situated within the commercial port (Varco Nord) of Taranto in the Apulia region of Italy. It officially opened in March 2016 as part of the European Union's "Hotspot Approach" to managing migration at the external borders.

Context & Operations: The facility is designed to rapidly receive, medically screen, identify, and fingerprint migrants shortly after they disembark from search-and-rescue vessels in the Mediterranean. Individuals are supposed to remain at the hotspot for a very short period (typically 48 to 72 hours) before being transferred to longer-term reception centers (like CARAs) or pre-removal detention centers (CPRs). The site consists primarily of modular container structures and large marquees set up on the port's concrete staging ground.

Funding & Contractors: The hotspot is funded by the Italian Ministry of Interior with significant financial support from the European Union (AMIF funds). The administrative management, catering, linguistic mediation, and basic healthcare on-site are outsourced via public tenders to private cooperatives and NGOs, under the direct supervision of the Prefettura di Taranto.

Location

Official contacts & outreach

Requests we have sent to councils, mayors and local authorities about this facility, with the status of their response.

Ufficio Relazioni con il Pubblico / FOI Officer, Prefettura di Taranto City council Awaiting response

Requested: 8 Oct 2026

What we asked: Please provide the financial details of the current management convention (capitolato d'appalto) awarded to the private cooperative/NGO currently operating the day-to-day services at the Varco Nord hotspot facility.

What formal public health contingency protocols are currently in place between the Prefettura, the managing cooperative, and the local ASL (Taranto health authority) to manage potential infectious disease outbreaks given the high-turnover nature of the facility?

Please provide a summary of public funds allocated over the last two financial years for the maintenance or replacement of the modular housing containers and temporary tents utilized within the port area.

← Back to Italy Submit a place for review →