Turin approves €700,000 power upgrade at Benefica market

Turin approves €700,000 plan to digitise electricity at Piazza Benefica market

Turin's city government has approved a €700 thousand executive project for market maintenance focused on Piazza Benefica, preparing electrical panels and cabling for QR-code-based, per-stall metering of electricity, with works due from March to September 2027.

3 November 2026 by Robert Eduard Antal, facts checked automatically against the source · updated 4 November 2026

Key facts

The city government approved an executive project for extraordinary maintenance of city markets worth €700,000 in total.

The planned system will identify each electrical tower with a QR code so stallholders can switch on power themselves and have their consumption metered.

Works are planned to be handed over in March 2027 and finished by September 2027.

Turin’s city government has approved an executive project worth €700 thousand for extraordinary maintenance of the city’s markets. The money will be concentrated on the market in the Martini gardens at Piazza Benefica, which will serve as a test for digitising Turin’s market networks. This phase prepares the electrical infrastructure for a later move to automatic metering of each trader’s electricity use.

What was approved

The city government approved the project on the proposal of Paolo Chiavarino, the councillor for commerce. The works are included in the 2026-2028 Three-Year Public Works Programme. This phase is preparatory and covers the electrical panels and the cables connecting them to the electrical manholes. The panels for the new system will be built next to the public toilets in the market area.

How the digital system will work

In a later phase, the market is to switch to a digitalised system in which dedicated digital devices record consumption automatically. Each power tower will be identified by its own QR code. This will let licensed stallholders switch on their supply themselves, while their consumption is metered so that it can be charged to them. According to Chiavarino, the solution will overcome structural problems with the existing installations and ensure modern, transparent and fair management of electricity use. He said the project came out of consultation between the commerce offices and the market traders.

Funding and timeline

Funding: a new medium to long-term loan taken out in 2026.
Running costs: no added management costs for the city budget.
Contracting: once the loan is finalised, a negotiated procedure on the MEPA online platform.
Handover of works: March 2027.
Estimated completion: September 2027.

Background

The decision follows earlier upgrading of the market area supported by PNRR funds. Site inspections and checks on works already prepared with the previous tranche of European funding helped the city’s technical staff set clear priorities. This led to the new investment, intended to complete and strengthen the infrastructure at Piazza Benefica.

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