Energy in Italy

Italy's energy landscape is characterized by a high dependency on imports and

significant reliance on fossil fuels. In 2022, 83.7% of the energy consumed in Italy
was imported. The country ranked first worldwide in energy imports in 2021, fourth in
natural gas imports in 2022, and ninth in oil imports in 2021.
Despite this dependency, Italy's per capita domestic consumption of primary energy
in 2022 was 37.5% higher than the global average but lower than that of France (by
20%) and Germany (by 29%). Fossil fuels accounted for 79% of Italy's primary
energy consumption (39.5% natural gas, 34.3% oil, and 5.2% coal), while renewable
energies contributed 18.4%, and 2.6% came from imported electricity.
Italy has a notable history of utilizing renewable energy, particularly hydroelectric and
geothermal power. In 2022, hydroelectricity provided 10.5% of Italy's electricity,
though this was a decline from 17.6% in 2020. Geothermal energy accounted for 2%
of electricity production. The country has also advanced in solar and wind power,
ranking 9th globally in solar power, 14th in wind power in 2022, 6th in geothermal
energy, and 8th in biomass in 2021.
Electricity meets only 21.3% of Italy's final energy consumption, with 68.2% of energy
use deriving from fossil fuels, primarily for transportation, heating, and industry. In
2018, renewable energies provided 15% of final energy consumption. Fossil fuels
comprised 63.4% of electricity production (48.4% natural gas, 9.6% coal, and 5.4%
oil), while renewables made up 35.6% (10.5% hydroelectricity, 9.8% solar, 7.2%
wind, 6.1% biomass-waste, and 2% geothermal). Net electricity imports covered 13%
of Italy's consumption.
Carbon dioxide emissions from energy in Italy reached 5.03 tonnes per capita in
2022, which is 23% higher than the global average and 25% higher than France's,
but 33% lower than Germany's.
Overview
Main energy indicators in Italy 1

Consumption primar
Consumptio
Population y Import. GHG emissions
Production n
2
energy net *
electricity G1

Year Million PJ PJ PJ TWh MtCO2eq

1990 56.7 6,136 1,060 5,329 235 397

2000 56.9 7,182 1,180 6,382 302 430

2010 59.3 7,274 1,382 6,217 326 404

2011 59.4 7,033 1,337 5,916 327 395

2012 59.5 6,755 1,464 5,528 321 378

2013 60.2 6,506 1,539 5,159 311 348

2014 60.8 6,145 1,536 4,817 304 329

2015 60.7 6,388 1,511 5,084 310 340

2016 60.6 6,321 1,403 5,088 308 336

2017 60.5 6,424 1,424 5,215 315 332

2018 60.4 6,304 1,455 5,105 316 328

2019 59.7 6,237 1,441 5,128 314 320

2020 59.4 5,756 1,441 4,425 295 284

2021 59.1 6,260 1,431 4,802 313 320

2022 58.9 5,951 1,331 4,980 311 306

variation
1990- +4% -3% +26% -7% +32% -23%
2022

Energy resources
Reserves
Italian oil production only meets a fraction of demand.

Italy's fossil fuel reserves are limited, but its renewable energy potential, particularly
for hydropower and solar energy, is considerable. The German Federal Agency for
Earth Sciences and Raw Materials (BGR) estimated at the end of 2020 that Italy had
80 million tonnes (Mt) of proven and economically recoverable oil reserves, with
additional potential resources of 1,540 Mt. By the end of 2020, Italy had produced a
cumulative total of 219 Mt of oil, indicating that a significant portion of its resources
has already been depleted. At the 2020 production rate of 5.4 Mt per year, Italy's oil
reserves would be exhausted in about 15 years. Since 2010, these reserves have
decreased by 39%.
For natural gas, Italy's proven recoverable reserves were estimated at 46 billion cubic
meters (Gm³) at the end of 2020, with additional potential resources of 405 Gm³.
Cumulative production until 2020 was 781 Gm³, showing substantial depletion of
resources. With a production rate of 4.4 Gm³ per year in 2020, the proven reserves
would be exhausted in approximately 10.5 years. These reserves have decreased by
30% since 2010.
In terms of national energy production, Italy produced 4.5 Mt of oil in 2022, equivalent
to 92 thousand barrels per day (kbl/d), which was a 7.9% decrease from 2021 and a
17% decrease since 2012. This production covered 7.5% of Italy's domestic oil
consumption. Additionally, Italy produced 3.2 Gm³ of natural gas in 2022, or 0.11
exajoules (EJ), which represented a 63% decline over the past decade and covered
4.7% of domestic gas consumption.
These figures underscore Italy's dependency on imports for its energy needs and
highlight the potential benefits of expanding its renewable energy capacity,
particularly in solar and hydropower, to enhance energy security and reduce reliance
on fossil fuel imports.
National energy production
In 2022, according to the Energy Institute , Italy produced 4.5 Mt of oil, or
92 kbl/d (thousand barrels per day), down 7.9% in 2022 and 17% since 2012 w 5 ,
covering 7.5% of domestic oil consumption w 6 . It produced 3.2 Gm 3 of natural gas,
or 0.11 EJ , down 63% in ten years w 7 , covering 4.7% of domestic gas consumption w
8
. It no longer produces coal.

Primary energy production in Italy by source ( PJ )

% var.
Source 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020 % 2022
2022 2022/1990

0.0
Coal 12 1.1 0.1 2.7 0.2 0 0 0 0% -100%
1

17. 16. 17. 16.

Oil 187 196 235 245 211 15.9% +13%
6 7 0 7

55. 48. 20.

Natural gas 587 570 288 138 9.4 107 8.0% -82%
4 4 9

74. 65. 38. 26.

Total fossils 786 767 526 383 318 23.9% -60%
1 0 1 1

10. 13. 13. 11.

Hydraulic 114 159 184 171 102 7.6% -11%
7 5 3 7

Geometric, 11. 15. 17. 26.

125 181 245 391 402 30.2% +223%
solar, wind 8 3 8 7

30. 35.
Biomass-waste 36 3.4 73 6.2 426 521 509 38.2% +1330%
9 5

Total RES 274 25. 413 35. 856 61. 1,083 73. 1,013 76.1% +270%
 9 0 9 9

Total 1,060 100 1,180 100 1,382 100 1,465 100 1,331 100% +26%

Data source: International Energy Agency 1

Primary energy production covers only 22.4% of domestic consumption in 2022.

In 2018, the country's energy production reached 43.42 Mtoe , an increase of 10.9%
compared to 2017, distributed in s 1 :

 fossil fuels: 21.6%, including:

 natural gas: 4.46 Mtoe (10.3%), covering 7.5% of domestic gas consumption;
 oil: 4.68 Mtoe (10.8%), 8% of oil consumption;
 coal: 0.25 Mtoe (0.6%), 2.7% of coal consumption;
 renewable energies: 34.02 Mtoe , or 78.4%.
All of these resources covered only 25.2% of the country's needs 1 . NB: between the
statistics of the IEA and those of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development
(MDE), several differences in conventions make comparisons difficult:

 the IEA values hydroelectric production at its equivalent in final consumption,

while the MDE applies a coefficient of one third between primary energy and final
energy, as for thermal energy;
 MDE integrates charcoal into coal and AIE into biomass, etc.
Imported energies
Italy depends on its imports for a very high share of its energy needs: in 2022, its net
imports reached 4,980 PJ , or 83.7% of its gross domestic consumption of primary
energy 1 .
Natural gas is the main imported energy in 2022; net natural gas imports reached
2.33 EJ , accounting for 99.2% of the country's gas consumption and 5.4% of global
imports, ranking 4th among gas importers in the world. Net imports of oil and petroleum
products reached 2.09 EJ , or 102% of the country's domestic oil consumption, with
a share of oil supplies having been consumed by international transport. Net coal
imports reached 0.32 EJ 1 .
In 2018, its energy imports reached 158.51 Mtoe compared to 163.46 Mtoe in 2017;
after deducting 31.09 Mtoe of exports (mainly petroleum products), net imports
represented 74.0% of the country's total energy consumption, while its national
production covered only 25.2% of his needs s 1 .
Oil is the main imported energy: in 2018, net imports of oil and petroleum products
reached 51.97 Mt , or 88.7% of the country's domestic oil consumption s 1 . The 11
refineries operating in 2018 have a refining capacity of 83.7 Mt/year , down 2.7%
compared to 2017. The Venice biorefinery, the first refinery in the world converted in
2014 to plant sources, has a biodiesel production capacity of
360,000 tonnes/year from used edible oils and palm oil; this capacity will be
increased to 420,000 tonnes/year in 2021, to which will be added the Gela
biorefinery (600,000 tonnes/year ) s 2 .
Italy also imported 9.23 Mtoe of coal in 2018, mainly for power plants, coke and heat
production plants .
Even electricity is largely imported: 9.66 Mtoe in 2018 s 1 , or 13% of the total gross
electricity supply.
Infrastructure [ edit | edit code ]
Refineries [ edit | edit code ]

SARAS Sarroch refinery, 2013.

The Priolo Gargallo complex, in Sicily, includes two refineries linked by pipelines:
ISAB NORD and ISAB SUD, belonging to the Russian company Lukoil , with a total
capacity of 16 Mt/year 7 .
The Sarroch refinery, in Sardinia (capacity: 15 Mt/year ), or more than 20% of the
country's refining capacity, belongs to SARAS (Società Anonima Raffinerie Sarde) 8 .
InMay 2018, the Algerian company Sonatrach buys from ESSO Italiana Srl (100%
subsidiary of Exxon Mobil ) the Augusta refinery in Sicily (capacity: 9.5 Mt/year ),
three oil terminals located in Augusta, Naples and Palermo as well as their
associated pipeline systems 9 .
The refineries of Porto Marghera (an industrial district of Venice ), and Gela , Sicily,
have been converted into bio-refineries using vegetable oils, waste (cooking oil, fats,
urban waste), and algae as raw materials. , etc (230,000 tonnes/year since 2014 in
Porto Marghera, 750,000 tonnes/year since 2019 in Gela) 10 .
Gas pipelines [ edit | edit code ]

 Main gas pipelines supplying Italy



Russian gas pipelines to Europe in 2006.

 

Trans-Mediterranean Pipeline and Greenstream.

Trans Adriatic Pipeline.

Russian gas is transported to Italy through the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline , then
the Trans Austria Gas Pipeline .
The Trans-Mediterranean Pipeline (or Enrico Mattei gas pipeline ) carries gas
from Algeria . Starting from Hassi R'Mel , it travels 550 km in Algerian territory, then
370 km in Tunisia , crosses the Mediterranean by an underwater section of 155 km ,
then Sicily (340 km ), the Strait of Messina , before going back up the entire Italian
peninsula, to join the gas network near Bologna .
The Greenstream gas pipeline , commissioned in 2004, the longest underwater gas
pipeline in the Mediterranean , connects western Libya to Sicily .
The Transitgas pipeline , inaugurated in 2008, connects the gas market in
northwest Europe with Italy 11 .
The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project, in French “trans-Adriatic gas pipeline”, is
a gas pipeline project transporting natural gas from the Caspian Sea ( Azerbaijan ) to
the European market . It starts from the Greek-Turkish border and crosses Greece ,
Albania and the Adriatic Sea to arrive in Italy 12 . Its construction was completed
inOctober 2020and its operation should begin mid-November 13 .
Energy consumption [ edit | edit code ]
From primary energy consumed to final energy
consumed [ edit | edit code ]
A country's energy consumption can be studied from two points of view:

 either at the level of its initial acquisition (production in Italy or import): we then
speak of “ primary energy consumption ”; in order to restrict the analysis to
domestic consumption only, energy exports are subtracted; in Italian statistics,
international bunkers (consumption of planes and ships destined for foreign
countries) are kept in domestic consumption, while in international statistics they
are subtracted;
 either at the level of their consumption by the end user, after all the cascade of
transformations (refining, electricity production, etc.), transport and distribution
 that they undergo before reaching them; we then speak of “ final energy
consumption ”.
Production flows, international exchanges and energy transformation are
summarized in a table in the form of a Resources/Employment balance sheet, called
" national
energy balance sheet ":

Energy assessment 2021 1

Resources PJ % Jobs PJ %

Consumption and losses in the energy 20.5

Primary energy production 1431 22.9% 1284
sector %

Imports 6030 96.3% Non-energy final consumption 245 3.9%

- - 74.9
Exports Final energy consumption 4686
1228 19.6% %

Holds -168 -2.7% Statistical differences 45 0.7%

Stock variation 195 3.1%

Total resources 6260 100% Total jobs 6237 100%

Energy sector consumption detail Final energy consumption details

25.9
Conversion losses 865 67% Industry 1213
%

31.3
Own consumption 302 24% Transportation 1466
%

Transmission/distribution 27.3
117 9% Residential 1280
losses %

12.7
Tertiary 596
%
 Agriculture + fishing 126 2.7%

Primary energy consumption

For technical reasons, it is temporarily impossible to display the graph that should
have been presented here.
Data source: International Energy Agency 1 .
In 2022, according to the Energy Institute , Italy consumed 6.14 EJ of primary
energy, down 12% in ten years, or 1.0% of global consumption (France: 1.4%,
Germany : 2.0%) w 9 . The share of fossil fuels in this consumption is 83.6% (natural
gas: 38.3%, oil: 40.2%, coal: 5.0%) and that of renewable energies 16.6%, of which 4
.2% hydroelectricity w 10 . Italian primary energy consumption per capita amounts to
104.1 GJ , down 2.7% in 2022 and 10.5% since 2012, 37.5% higher than the world
average (75.7 GJ ), but 20% lower than that of France (129.8 GJ ), 29% lower than
that of Germany (147.5 GJ ) and 63% lower than that of the United States
(283.5 GJ ) w 11 .

Primary energy consumption in Italy by source ( PJ )

% var.
Source 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020 % 2022
2022 2022/1990

10.
Coal 613 526 7.3 572 7.9 213 3.7 310 5.2% -49%
0

56. 50. 37. 31.

Oil 3,488 3,636 2,734 1,812 2,044 34.3% -41%
8 6 6 5

26. 33. 39. 42.

Natural gas 1,633 2,426 2,849 2,440 2,349 39.5% +44%
6 8 2 4

93. 91. 84. 77.

Total fossils 5,734 6,588 6,155 4,466 4,703 79.0% -18%
4 7 6 6

Hydraulic 114 1.9 159 2.2 184 2.5 171 3.0 102 1.7% -11%

Geometric, solar,
125 2.0 181 2.5 245 3.4 391 6.8 402 6.8% +223%
wind

10.
Biomass-waste 39 0.6 94 1.3 530 7.3 613 589 9.9% +1396%
6
 13. 20.
Total RES 278 4.5 434 6.0 959 1,175 1,093 18.4% +294%
2 4

Imp.electricity
125 2.0 160 2.2 159 2.2 116 2.0 155 2.6% +24%
balance

Total 6,136 100 7,182 100 7,274 100 5,756 100 5,951 100% -3%

Data source: International Energy Agency 1

The total primary resources produced in Italy or imported in 2018 was 172.3 Mtoe .
Primary energy consumption is massively dominated by fossil fuels: 73.9% (coal:
5.4%; oil: 34.5%; natural gas: 34.0%); renewable energies cover only 20.5% of
needs, and the electricity import balance provides the remaining 5.6% s 1 .
Renewable electrical energies cover 34.5% of gross domestic electricity
consumption s 3 ; thermal renewable energies provide 10.9 Mtoe ,
including 7.9 Mtoe of biomass and 2.6 Mtoe of heat pumps;
agrofuels provide 1.25 Mtoe (biodiesel) s 4 . Here we find the discrepancies between
the statistics of the IEA and those of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development
(MDE), already noted in the chapter “National energy production”, in particular the
undervaluation by the IEA of renewable energies electricity (hydroelectric, wind and
solar production).
Final energy consumption
For technical reasons, it is temporarily impossible to display the graph that should
have been presented here.
Data source: International Energy Agency 1

Final energy consumption in Italy by source ( PJ )

% var.
Source 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020 % 2021
2021 2021/1990

Coal 149 3.1 112 2.1 79 1.4 30 0.7 38 0.8% -74%

2,57 53. 48. 40. 35.

Oil products 2,608 2,279 1,600 1,818 36.9% -29%
3 5 4 7 6

1,27 26. 30. 29. 30.

Natural gas 1,616 1,636 1,359 1,506 30.5% +18%
3 4 0 2 2
 3,99 83. 80. 71. 66.
Total fossils 4,336 3,994 2,989 3,362 68.2% -16%
5 0 4 3 5

Solar Thermal 9 0.2 9 0.2 11 0.2 15 0.3 15 0.3% +76%

Biomass-waste 36 0.8 66 1.2 378 6.7 341 7.6 371 7.5% +928%

16. 18. 19. 22.

Electricity 773 983 1,078 991 1,052 21.3% +36%
1 2 2 0

Heat 0 0 140 2.5 162 3.6 131 2.6% ns

4,81
Total 100 5,394 100 5,600 100 4,498 100 4,931 100% +2%
3

Final energy consumption (after refining, transformation into electricity or network

heat , transport, etc.) was 127.3 Mtoe in 2018 , up 1.5% compared to 2017. It was
divided into 73, 2% fossil fuels (coal 1.7%, oil 41.8%, natural gas 29.7%), 7.0%
thermal renewable energies and 19.8% electricity 5 . Electricity production was split
into 60.3% from fossil fuels and 39.7% from renewable energy; in total, final
consumption was therefore 85% of fossil origin and 15% of renewable origin s 6 .
The share of renewable energies evolved as follows:

Gross final consumption of renewable energy in Italy g 1 (Mtoe)

change %
Sector 2010 2015 2016 2017
2017/2010

Electric sector 5.92 9.43 9.50 9.73 +64%

Hydraulics (corrected)* 3.73 3.95 3.97 3.96 +6%

Wind power (corrected)* 0.76 1.32 1.42 1.48 +95%

Solar 0.16 1.97 1.90 2.10 +1212%

Geothermal energy 0.46 0.53 0.54 0.53 +15%

Bioenergy** 0.81 1.67 1.67 1.66 +105%

Thermal sector 10.02 10.69 10.54 11.21 +12%

Geothermal energy 0.14 0.13 0.14 0.15 +7%

Solar Thermal 0.13 0.19 0.20 0.21 +62%

Bioenergy** 7.65 7.78 7.59 8.20 +7%

Heat pumps*** 2.09 2.58 2.61 2.65 +27%

Transport sector 1.42 1.16 1.04 1.06 -25%

total RES 17.36 21.29 21.08 22.00 +27%

share of gross final consumption 13.0% 17.5% 17.4% 18.3%

* production corrected for the effects of variations in precipitation (hydro) and winds (wind), according to the rules of Directive 2009/28/EC.
** including renewable share of urban waste.
*** renewable share

Distribution by sector

Final energy consumption in Italy by sector ( PJ )

var.
%
Sector 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020 % 2021 2021/199
2021
0

29. 29. 22. 22.

Industry 1,427 1,602 1,262 1,002 1,213 24.6% -15%
7 7 5 3

28. 30. 28. 27.

Transportation 1,369 1,662 1,615 1,213 1,466 29.7% +7%
5 8 8 0

Residential 1,091 22. 1,155 21. 1,482 26. 1,280 28. 1,280 26.0% +17%
 7 4 5 4

12. 13.
Tertiary 342 7.1 483 9.0 711 594 596 12.1% +74%
7 2

Agriculture 122 2.5 122 2.3 114 2.0 116 2.6 118 2.4% -3%

Fishing 8 0.2 11 0.2 9 0.2 8 0.2 8 0.2% -4%

0.0
Unspecified 16 0.3 7 0.1 7 0.1 2 6 0.1% -64%
4

Non-energy uses
436 9.1 353 6.5 400 7.1 283 6.3 245 5.0% -44%
(chemistry)

Total 4,813 100 5,394 100 5,600 100 4,498 100 4,931 100% +2%

Data source: International Energy Agency 1

The distribution of final energy consumption by use was as follows s5

:

 non-energy uses: 5.7 Mtoe (4.5%; mainly chemicals);

 bunkers: 3.15 Mtoe (2.5%; aircraft consumption excluding domestic flights and
international line boats);
 indoor energy uses: 118.5 Mtoe (93.1%), including:
 industry: 27.2 Mtoe (21.4%);
 transport: 40.1 Mtoe (31.5%);
 residential-tertiary: 48.1 Mtoe (37.8%);
 agriculture: 3.0 Mtoe (2.4%).
NB: the International Energy Agency does not take into account international
bunkers, which are not domestic consumption.
Electricity sector [ edit | edit code ]
 Evolution of electricity
production in Italy since 1950:
in blue: electricity imports
Data source: Terna .
Italy produces its electricity using thermal power plants , hydropower plants and other
renewable energy installations. It is a net importer of electricity 14 .
The graph opposite clearly shows:

 the very rapid growth in demand, stopped in 2008 by the economic crisis;
 the overwhelming preponderance of fossil fuels;
 the massive use of electricity imports (in blue);
 the recent contribution, still modest but rapidly growing, of new renewable
energies.
Production [ edit | edit code ]
In 2022, according to the Energy Institute , Italy produced 287.3 TWh of electricity,
down 4% from ten years, or 1.0% of world production and 10.2% of that of the
European Union w 12 . The share of fossil fuels is 63.9% (natural gas: 54.4%, coal:
6.1%, oil: 3.4%), that of renewable energies (EnR) is 34.9%, of which 9 .8%
hydroelectricity and 25.1% other RE, and that of other sources 1.3% w 1 . The share of
solar power is estimated at 9.6%, that of wind power at 7.2% and that of other
renewable energies (geothermal energy, biomass, waste) at 8.3% w 2 .

Evolution of electricity production in Italy

Gross production % var.

1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2022
(TWh) 2022 2022/1990

Fossil thermal 8.0 70.2 133.3 178.2 217.8 218.9 158.8 181.7 63.4% +2%

including coal n/a n/a n/a 35.8 30.5 44.4 15.0 27.5 9.6% -23%

including oil n/a n/a n/a 102. 85.9 21.7 10.0 15.6 5.4% -85%
 7

including natural 101. 152. 133. 138.

n/a n/a n/a 39.7 48.4% +249%
gas 4 7 7 6

Nuclear thermal 3.2 2.2

Hydraulic 46.1 41.3 47.5 35.1 50.9 54.4 49.5 30.1 10.5% -14%

less Pumping n/a -1.4 -3.3 -4.8 -9.1 -4.5 n/a n/a n/a

Geothermal energy 2.1 2.7 2.7 3.2 4.7 5.4 6.0 5.8 2.0% +81%

Biomass 0.014 1.0 7.4 17.3 15.2 5.3% x1084

Renewed waste 0.04 0.4 2.0 2.3 2.3 0.8% x62

Wind 0.002 0.56 9.1 18.8 20.6 7.2% ns

Photovoltaic 0.004 0.02 1.9 24.9 28.1 9.8% ns

Total RES 48.2 42.6 46.9 38.4 48.5 80.3 118.9 102.0 35.6% +166%

Non-renewable
0.05 0.5 2.2 2.4 2.3 0.8% x44
waste

Other sources 0 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.2% ns

Gross
56.2 116.1 182.5 216.6 276.6 297.6 280.5 286.7 100% +32%
production no. 1

Own consumption 1.4 5.0 9.0 20.5 28.8 21.8 20.2 21.5 7.5% +5%

Net production 54.9 111.1 173.5 196.1 247.8 275.8 260.3 265.2 92.5% +35%
Sources: Terna for the years 1960 to 1980 d 1 ; International Energy Agency 3 for 1990-2020.

The economic crisis at the end of 2008 caused electricity demand to fall by 6.2% in
2009; after a slight recovery, it fell in 2016 below the 2009 level. The strong increase
in renewable energies (+47% since 2010) made it possible to reduce production
based on fossil fuels by 27% between 2010 and 2020; the drop in demand caused by
the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 is, however, partly responsible for this decline in
fossils.
In 2018, gross electricity production in Italy reached 289.7 TWh , down 2.1%
compared to 2017; thermal power plants provided 66.5% of production and
renewable energies 33.5%: hydraulic 17.4%, solar 7.8%, wind 6.1% and geothermal
2.1% (note: this statistic includes biomass and waste in thermal energy). Net
production was 279.8 TWh , including 2.3 TWh intended for pumping 15 .

Evolution of installed power d 2

Load
Var.
Gross power factor
1960 1980 2000 2010 2015 2017 2018 2018
(MW) 2018
2000
(%)*

56,43
Classic thermal 4,556 30,654 78,341 68,597 64,045 64,021 +13.4% 34.4%
1

Nuclear thermal 1,471

20,65
Hydraulic 11,468 15,904 21,893 22,560 22,838 22,911 +10.9% 25.2%
8

Geothermal 287 440 627 772 821 813 813 +30% 85.7%

Wind+Photovoltai +8109
370 9,406 28,063 29,448 30,372 15.4%
c %

78,08 110 120,04 117 118

Total power 16,311 48,469 +51% 28.1%
6 380 1 144 117

* Load factor 2018: the calculation takes into account the staggering of commissioning.

Fossil thermal power plants

For technical reasons, it is temporarily impossible to display the graph that should
have been presented here.
Production of thermal power plants by fuel in Italy
Data source: Terna d 3
Fossil fuel thermal power plants provide the majority of electricity production in Italy,
with a total of 192.1 TWh in 2018, or 66.3% of the electricity produced in the country.
During the decade 1997-2007, natural gas power plants experienced strong growth
from 24 to 55% of total electricity production; since 2009 they have declined sharply,
falling to 33.5% in 2014, but still representing 53.4% of thermal production; from 2015
to 2017, they resumed their progression: +35% in two years, rising to 48.4% of total
electricity production and 67.2% of thermal production in 2017 (66.9% in 2018) ; the
rest of this production is provided by coal (14.8%; down 42% compared to its peak in
2012 after having experienced a rebound of 24% in 2011-12, as in all of Europe due
to the drop in coal prices caused by the shale gas boom in the United States),
process gases (1.3%), petroleum products (1.7%), other fuels (especially biomass,
as well as as tar, refinery gas, recovered heat, etc.) representing 15.3% d 3 .

The Eugenio Montale thermal power station near La

Spezia in Liguria , one of the largest in Italy (1.3 GW ), in service since 1962 16 .
Their total installed capacity reached 62,429 MW at the end of 2016, including
4,717 MW belonging to self-producers:

 1,867 units, with a total power of 38,971 MW , dedicated solely to electricity

production;
 3,539 units, with a total power of 21,968 MW , of cogeneration (combined heat +
electricity production).
The combined cycle (gas) units numbered 174 and had a total power of
40,242 MW (including 58 purely electric units: 22,300 MW and 116 cogeneration
units: 17,942 MW ), and the gas turbines 130 units ( 3,073 MW ); steam condensing
units (coal) were 104 (12,637 MW ) 17 .
The fuels consumed for the production of electricity were in 2018 d4
of:

 10,633 kt of coal and lignite;

 23,592 million m3 of natural gas and 4,772 million m3 of derived gas;
 585 kt of petroleum products;
 16,718 kt of other solid fuels (biomass, etc.) and 3,496 Mm 3 of other gaseous
fuels (biogas, etc.).
ENEL has launched a call for projects for 23 old power plants currently being closed,
or 13,000 MW , out of 54 power plants in total; the Tor del Sale combined cycle
power plant in Piombino , near Livorno in Tuscany , will serve as a pilot site 18 .
ENEL plans to achieve its goal of zero CO 2 emissions 10 years ahead of schedule in 2017initially set for
2050. Enel Green Power will install 2,500 MW of renewable energy plants in 2017.
ENEL had already closed 13,000 MW of old fossil thermal power plants in 2015 19 .
Nuclear energy [ edit | edit code ]

Trino Vercellese nuclear power

plant in Trino ( Province of Vercelli , Piedmont ), on the banks of the Po.
Following a referendum approved by 62% of the population, Italy renounced the use
of civil nuclear power in 1987 . The nuclear power plants then in operation
(1,312 MW ) were gradually shut down. InMay 2008, the government of Silvio
Berlusconi announces a return to nuclear energy in order to resolve the country's
energy dependence. An agreement is signed on February 24, 2009aimed at the
creation of a company half-owned by Électrcité de France and Enel . The objective
was the construction of at least four EPR 20 type reactors . The emotion raised by
the Fukushima disasterMarch 2011forced the government to abandon this project 21 .
In September 2021, the Minister of Ecological Transition Roberto Cingolani declared
about fourth generation nuclear reactors : “Countries are investing in this technology.
She's not yet mature, but she will be soon. If, at a certain point, we are assured that
radioactive waste will be few, safety high and costs low, it would be folly not to
consider it” 22 .
The Minister of Economic Development, Giancarlo Giorgetti , expressed concern in
December 2021 about energy supply and soaring prices: “An energy blackout in
Europe cannot be ruled out, a plan to avoid it must be defined as quickly as possible
and the use of clean nuclear power must be considered without preconceived ideas .
Italy thus supports France in its efforts to include it in the European green taxonomy .
Around a hundred Italian companies were awarded more than half of the high
technological value industrial contracts of the ITER project for a value of more than 1
billion euros and the DTT machine (“Divertor Tokamak Test”), one of the
predecessors of Demo, the first fusion power plant which will take over from Iter, will
be built near Rome. Eni is the majority shareholder of Commonwealth Fusion
Systems (CFS), a start-up created by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT) to launch a pilot nuclear fusion reactor by 2025 . In Turin, physicist
entrepreneur Stefano Buono completed a 118 million euro funding round in just two
months to finance Newcleo, a start-up specializing in fourth generation reactors; its
investors include Exor Seeds, the innovation fund of the Agnelli -Elkann family, and
other Italian industrial families such as the Bormioli , Malacalza and Rovatti 23 .
In March 2023, a study by the Robert-Schuman Foundation reveals a strong increase
in public opinion support for nuclear electricity in 2022 in Europe: in Italy, the share of
the population who declare themselves "very in favor" or “rather in favor” of nuclear
energy reached 43% (+18 points) against 45% (“very opposed”: 25% against 40% in
2021) 24 .
The Chamber of Deputies votes in May 2023 on a motion which commits the
government to “assess the advisability of including nuclear power as an alternative
and clean source for the production of energy” . The motion, voted by the majority
parties as well as two opposition parties and with the abstention of the Democratic
Party, recalls that Italy's energy dependence rate reached 73% in 2020 compared to
58% on average in the European Union. On September 21, 2023, the “National
Platform for Sustainable Nuclear Energy” was launched in Rome, under the aegis of
the Minister of the Environment and Energy Security (MASE), to prepare a roadmap
by the end of April 2024 to define “a national strategy for sustainable nuclear
power” then an “implementation plan” of said strategy by 2030 for fission and 2050
for fusion. The government is interested in small modular reactors (SMRs) and fourth
generation nuclear reactors (AMRs) rather than large third generation nuclear power
plants 25 , 26 .
Renewable energies
For technical reasons, it is temporarily impossible to display the graph that should
have been presented here.

Electricity production from renewable energies in Italy

Source: GSE g 2 , g 3 , g 4 , g 5 , g 6
The 2017 annual statistical report from GSE ( Gestore dei servizi energetici ), the
agency responsible for promoting renewable energies, estimates the gross final
consumption of renewable energy in 2017 at 22 Mtoe , an increase of 4.4%; its
share in the country's final energy consumption amounted to 17.4%; in the electricity
sector, renewable energies produced a little less than 104 TWh , or 35% of national
electricity production (after correction according to the rules of European Directive
2009/28/EC: 113 TWh , or 34.1% of gross domestic electricity consumption);
hydraulic production contributed 35%, photovoltaic production 23%, biomass 19%,
wind production 17% and geothermal 6%. In the thermal RE sector, renewable
energy production covered a little more than 20% of consumption with 11.2 Mtoe ,
including 7.9 Mtoe of biomass (including renewable share of waste). In the transport
sector, biofuels provided 1.06 Mtoe g 7 .

Renewable electricity production units in Italy g 8

change %
Sector 2010 2015 2017
2017/2010

numbe numbe numbe

MW MW MW number MW
r r r
Hydraulic 2,729 17,876 3,693 18,543 4,268 18,863 +56.4% +5.5%

+1046
Wind 487 5,814 2,734 9,162 5,579 9,766 +68%
%

+467
Solar 155,977 3,470 687,759 18,901 774,014 19,682 +396%
%

Geothermal energy 33 772 34 821 34 813 +3% +5.3%

Bioenergy :

Solid biomass 142 1,243 369 1,612 468 1,667 +230% +34%

+184
Biogas 451 508 1,924 1,406 2,117 1,444 +369%
%

Bioliquids 97 601 525 1,038 500 1,024 +415% +70%

total bioenergy 669 2,352 2,647 4,057 2,913 4,135 +335% +76%

total RES 159,895 30,284 696,867 51,483 786 808 53,259 +392% +76%

Renewable electricity production in Italy g 9

change %
Sector 2010 27 2015 2017 2018
2017/2010

correcte correcte correcte correcte actual

GWh real real real real (TWh)
d* d* d* d* 15

51,11
Hydraulic 43,393 45,537 45,933 36,199 46,047 -29.2% +6.1% 48,786
7

Wind 9,126 8,787 14,844 15,298 17,742 17,198 +94.4 +95.7% 17,716
 %

+1179
Solar 1,906 22,942 24,378 22,654
%

Geothermal +15.3
5,376 6,185 6,201 6,105
energy %

Bioenergy

Solid +53.6
4,308 6,290 6,615
biomass %

of which
part +18.3
2,048 2,428 2,422
renewal. %
waste **

+304
Biogas 2,054 8,212 8,299
%

Bioliquids 3,078 n/a 4,894 4,865 4,464 4,388 +45% n/a

total
9,440 n/a 19,396 19,367 19,378 19,303 +105% n/a 19,153
bioenergy

76,96 108,90 103,89 114

total RES 68,902 109,725 113 143 +35% +64%
4 4 8 415

share of
gross final 22.4
20.1% 33.2% 33.5% 31.3% 34.1% 34.5%
consumpti %
on

* production corrected for the effects of variations in precipitation (hydro) and winds (wind), according to the rules of Directive 2009/28/EC.
** renewable share of urban waste.

The share of renewable energy in Italian gross electricity production increased from
16.0% in 2003 to 43.1% in 2014, then fell to 35.1% in 2017 g 10 . This relapse is due to
the sharp drop in hydroelectric production: 36.2 TWh in 2017 compared to
58.5 TWh in 2014, or -38.2% g 2 .

Load factor (%) of renewable energy plants

200 201 201 201 averag

Sector 2007 2008 2010 2012 2013 2015 2016
9 1 4 7 e

Hydro 21.4 26.9 31.7 32.7 28.9 26.4 32.9 36.3 28.1 25.6 22.0 28.4

Wind 20.4 18.8 18.0 20.0 17.8 21.1 20.5 20.2 19.2 21.8 21.1 19.9

Solar 13.7 13.2 13.3 13.6 15.1 14.9 14.2 13.8 14.0 13.2 14.3 13.9

Geothermal
89.4 88.4 84.0 81.2 83.6 82.5 83.6 82.3 86.0 88.1 87.1 85.1
energy

Bioenergy 43.3 44.9 43.7 45.6 43.4 43.5 49.3 52.4 53.7 53.1 53.1 47.8

load factor = production / (installed power x number of hours per year)

Source: GSE (2007-2012: 2012 report 27 and 2013-2017: 2017 report g 11 ).

The load factor (or utilization rate) is an essential technical characteristic of a means
of producing electricity: according to this criterion, geothermal energy is by far the
most efficient energy, and solar the least available; but other criteria are also
important, in particular controllability (possibility for the electrical system manager to
quickly stop/start a power plant, or at least to modulate its power, according to
instantaneous consumer demand); from this point of view, hydraulic power plants
equipped with a reservoir are very valuable; finally, the criterion of production cost is
obviously crucial; the load factor of bioenergy is affected by the seasonal nature of
most cogeneration plants in which it is used to supply heat networks.
Hydroelectricity

Main article: Hydroelectricity in Italy .

Geothermal energy [ edit | edit code ]

Related article: Larderello .

 Larderello geothermal power plant in
Tuscany.
In 2021, Italy ranked 6th in the world for geothermal electricity production with
5.91 TWh , or 6.2% of global geothermal production; the United States, in 1st place ,
produced 19.08 TWh (20%) 3 .
In 1818, François de Larderel , a Frenchman considered the father of geothermal
energy , developed a technique to collect the steam emitted by the "lagoni" and
release it at sufficient pressure to power the necessary evaporation boilers for the
extraction of boric acid from sludge naturally rich in boric substances. The technique
will be perfected in 1827, then in 1833, when the first drilling work will be carried out
which will increase the quantity of steam which will later lead to the production of
electricity. Grand Duke Leopold II of Habsburg-Tuscany supported Larderel's
enterprise and granted him the title of Count of Montecerboli. A town, named
Larderello in homage to the industrialist's action, was founded to accommodate the
workers working in the boric acid production factory.
Power generation from geothermal sources was first tested in 1904, when five light
bulbs were lit using electricity produced by steam emerging from holes in the ground
- the first practical demonstration of the power of geothermal energy. In 1911, the first
geothermal power station was built in the Valle del Diavolo ("Devil's Valley"). It
remained the only geothermal electricity plant in the world until 1958, when New
Zealand acquired it in turn. Let us remember, however, that it was undoubtedly in the
United States, in Boise, Idaho, that geothermal energy was first used for other
purposes, in 1890 and 1891, when the city dug two wells geothermal energy with the
aim of providing hot water to the city.
Larderello today produces 8% of the world's geothermal energy production, or more
than 5,000 GWh /year, supplying electricity to around 1 million Italian homes. Its
exceptional geology allows it to produce geothermal energy using hot granite rocks
exposed to the surface of the ground and producing steam with a temperature of up
to 220 degrees Celsius. However, in recent years doubts have arisen about the
sustainability of its steam reserves, as a 30% drop in pressure level has been
recorded compared to the record levels of the 1950s.
Italy has, in 2017, 34 geothermal power plants, all located in Tuscany , with a total
installed capacity of 813 MW including 407 MW in the province of Pisa , 204 MW in
the province of Siena and 202 MW in the province of Grosseto ; 27 power plants
have less than 20 MW and 4 more than 40 MW ; from 2003 to 2017, the number of
power plants changed little (34 in 2003, 31 from 2004 to 2008, 32 in 2009, 33 from
2010 to 2012, 34 since 2013), their power increased by 707 MW at 813 MW (+15%)
with a peak at 821 MW in 2014-2015, and their production from 5,341 GWh to
6,201 GWh (+16%) (6,289 GWh in 2016); the availability of the geothermal source
is constant, so the load factor is high (record usage time of 7,626 hours in 2017, or
87.1%; 7,720 MW hours in 2016, or 88.1%) g 12 .
Wind power

Main article: Wind energy in Italy .

Solar [ edit | edit code ]

Main article: Solar energy in Italy .

Biomass [ edit | edit code ]
In 2021, Italy ranked 8th in the world for electricity production from biomass with
16.8 TWh , or 2.7% of world production, to compare with Germany:
41.1 TWh ( 6.6% - 4th place behind China, the United States and Brazil) and the
United Kingdom: 35.3 TWh (5.7% - 5th place ) 3 .

Bioenergy electricity production units in Italy g 13

variation
Source 2010 2015 2017
2017/10

numbe numbe
MW number MW MW number MW
r r

Solid biomass 142 1,243 369 1,612 468 1,667 +230% +34%

urban waste 71 798 69 953 65 936 -8% +17%

others 71 445 300 659 403 731 +468% +64%

Biogas 451 508 1,924 1,406 2,116 1,444 +369% +184%

of waste 228 341 380 399 409 411 +79% +21%

+200
sludge 47 15 78 44 78 45 +66%
%

+473
animal droppings 95 41 493 217 602 235 +534%
%
agricultural and forestry +1168 +585
81 110 973 746 1027 753
waste % %

Bioliquids 97 601 525 1,038 500 1,024 +415% +70%

vegetal oils 86 510 436 892 403 869 +369% +70%

others 11 91 89 146 97 154 +782% +69%

total bioenergy 669 2,352 2,647 4,056 2,913 4,135 +335% +76%

The table above does not take into account hybrid power plants, which produce
electricity from fossil fuels with additional biomass. In terms of number of power
plants, biogas dominates with 72.6%, but in terms of installed capacity, solid biomass
comes first with 40.3%, followed by biogas: 34.9% and bio-liquids: 24. 8%. Biogas
units have an average capacity of 0.7 MW , while solid biomass units have an
average of 3.6 MW g 13 .
From 2003 to 2017, the power of bioenergy units increased at the rate of 10% per
year, but this growth slowed down from 2013 (+2.5% only in five years); the average
size of units has decreased significantly: 1.4 MW in 2017 compared to 4.3 MW in
2005 and 4.8 MW in 2009 g 14 .

Bioenergy electricity production in Italy g 5

variatio
GWh 2010 2015 2017 n
2017/10

Solid biomass 4,308 6,290 6,615 +54%

2,04
urban waste 2,428 2,422 +18%
8

2,26
others 3,862 4,193 +86%
0

Biogas 2,054 8,212 8,299 +304%

of waste 1,41 1,527 1,426 +1%

 5

sludge 28 128 136 +386%

animal droppings 221 1,067 1,194 +440%

agricultural and forestry

390 5,490 5,543 +1321%
waste

Bioliquids 3,078 4,894 4,464 +45%

2,68
vegetal oils 4,190 3,700 +38%
2

others 397 704 763 +92%

total bioenergy 9,440 19,396 19,378 +105%

In 2017, bioenergy provided 18.7% of renewable electricity production; production

from solid biomass increased by 1.2%, that of biogas remained stable (+0.5%) and
that of bioliquids fell by 5.2%, especially that based on vegetable oils (oil especially
palm) g 5 .
From 2003 to 2017, production increased at a rate of 12% per year, going from
3,587 GWh to 19,378 GWh ; biogas has experienced particularly dynamic growth.
In 2017, the share of biogas was 42.8%, that of solid biomass 34.1% (urban waste:
12.5%, others: 21.6%) and that of bioliquids 23% g 15 .
The main producing regions were in 2017 g 16 :

 Lombardy (biogas and urban waste): 4,406 GWh (22.7%) ;

 Emilia -Romagna (especially biogas): 2,720 GWh (14%);
 Veneto ( biogas and other biomass): 1,956 GWh (10.1%);
 Puglia ( especially bioliquids): 1,914 GWh GWh (9.9%);
 Piedmont ( biogas and other biomass): 1,856 GWh (9.6%).
Transport and distribution [ edit | edit code ]
High voltage electricity transmission is provided by Terna , a company listed on the
Italian stock exchange, which presents itself as "the leading transport network
operator in Europe and the 6th in the world in terms of km of lines managed" . The
transmission network includes 63,500 km of HV lines, 22 interconnection lines with
foreign countries, 445 transformer stations 28 . Terna is also responsible for economic
dispatching .
 Evolution of the length of HV networks d 2

Length
1960 1980 2000 2010 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
(km)

36,26 45,75 48,89 48,80

120-150kV 23,395 44,046 46,575 48,832 48,766
8 8 5 1

14,47 11,28 11,06 10,87

220kV 9,889 11,980 10,935 11,043 11,011
0 4 6 6

10,71 11,01 11,20

380kV 4,813 9,782 10,996 11,211 11,308
3 5 2

55,55 67,75 70,97 70,87

Total length 33,284 65,808 68,506 71,086 71,085
1 5 6 9

Enel, a pioneer in the field of “ smart meters ” that can be interrogated remotely,
began installing 16 million new generation meters in 2017 with the aim of becoming a
leader in the Internet of Things and better managing intermittent flows provided by
solar and wind energy 19 .
International trade
Related article: International electricity exchanges .
Italy began importing electricity in 1926, but these imports remained low until 1961; in
1962 they passed the TWh threshold, then they fluctuated without ever exceeding
4 TWh ; in 1979 began a very rapid rise: from 2.1 TWh in 1978, imports rose to
5.4 TWh in 1979, reached 11.1 TWh in 1983, then 20.9 TWh in 1984, 31.3 TWh in
1988, 40.7 TWh in 1998, 50.97 TWh in 2003; since then, they have tended to
decrease, with fluctuations linked to hydraulicity : 46.4 TWh in 2015, 37.0 TWh in
2016, 37.8 TWh in 2017, 43.9 TWh in 2018 d 1 .
Italy's import balance in 2022 amounts to 42.99 TWh , or 13% of gross electricity
consumption. In 2021, the import balance was (42.79 TWh ), placing the
country 1st in the world among electricity importers, ahead of Iraq (41.46 TWh ) and
the United States (39.31 TWh ) 3 .
In 2018, Italy imported 47.17 TWh of electricity (+10%) and exported 3.27 TWh ;
the import balance of 43.90 TWh represents 13.2% of the country's demand 15 .

Italy's international physical electricity exchanges

GWh Imports Exports Sales

 201 201 201 201
Country 2015 2016 2017 2018 2015 2016 2017 2018
5 6 7 8

16,31 13,98 13,71 15,38 1,03 1,05 15,50 12,94 12,65 14,58
France 810 806
6 7 7 6 8 8 6 9 9 0

26,18 20,97 21,59 22,54 1,32 1,26 1,13 25,35 19,65 20,32 21,40
Swiss 824
0 7 2 0 2 5 9 6 5 7 1

Austri
1,538 1,443 1,332 1,417 40 68 120 24 1,498 1,375 1,212 1,393
a

Sloven
6,223 6,468 5,894 6,739 81 171 151 60 5,743 6,297 6,142 6,679
ia

Greec 1,67 2,03 1,63 - - -

592 306 325 1,078 611 467
e 2 0 8 1,080 1,724 1,313

1,04 1,52 - -
Malta 0 0 35 11 902 632 -867 -621
4 5 1,044 1,525

50,84 43,18 42,89 47,17 4,47 6,15 5,13 3,27 46,37 37,02 37,76 43,89
Total
9 1 5 0 1 4 4 1 8 6 1 9

Source: Terna, statistics 2018 15

foreign trade balance: negative if exporter

Exports to France are intended for Corsica, via two 220 kV submarine cables ( Italy-
Corsica-Sardinia direct current link ), one from Sardinia, the other from the continent,
near the Island of Elba.
Consumption

For technical reasons, it is temporarily impossible to display the graph that should
have been presented here.

Electricity consumption by sector in Italy

Data source: Terna d 5
NB: transport is included in the tertiary sector.
The graph shows:
 the preponderance of industry, and its sensitivity to the economic situation (fall of
6% in 2009);
 the uninterrupted and very rapid rise of the Tertiary;
 the slowdown in residential growth since the 1990s.
According to the International Energy Agency , per capita electricity consumption in
2022 amounts to 5.3 MWh in Italy, 47% higher than the world average: 3.6 MWh in
2021, but 23% lower. % to that of France: 6.9 MWh , 24% to that of Germany:
7.0 MWh and 60% to that of the United States: 13.4 MWh . After strong growth from
1990 (4.1 MWh ) to 2006 (5.8 MWh ), it fell to (5.0 MWh ) in 2014 before rising
slightly 29 .
The distribution by sector of final electricity consumption has evolved as follows,
according to the International Energy Agency (the International Energy
Agency classifies the consumption of the oil, gas and coal mine that Terna classifies
in the final consumption of the industry):

Final electricity consumption in Italy by sector ( TWh )

% var.
Sector 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020 % 2021
2021 2021/1990

51. 52. 42. 42.

Industry 110.9 141.8 127.9 117.3 122.7 42.4% +11%
7 0 7 6

Transportatio
6.7 3.1 8.5 3.1 10.7 3.6 10.1 3.7 10.8 3.7% +60%
n

24. 22. 23. 24.

Residential 52.7 61.1 69.5 66.2 65.2 22.6% +24%
6 4 2 1

18. 20. 28. 27.

Tertiary 40.0 56.6 85.6 75.3 83.9 29.0% +110%
6 7 6 3

Agriculture 4.2 2.0 4.9 1.8 5.6 1.9 6.3 2.3 6.6 2.3% +56%

Total 214.6 100 273.0 100 299.3 100 275.2 100 289.1 100% +35%

Data source: International Energy Agency 3

ENEL has allocated 300 million euros for the deployment of 12,000 charging stations
for electric cars, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2017 19 .
Heat networks
The heat produced by cogeneration plants (93%) as well as by boiler rooms (7%)
and distributed by heat networks represented 131 PJ in 2021, or 2.6% of the
country's final energy consumption, intended for 65% in industry, 23% in the
residential sector and 10% in the tertiary sector 1 . It was produced in 2022 from fossil
fuels for 82.7% (coal: 0.6%, oil: 16.7%, natural gas: 65.4%), renewable energies for
14.9% (biomass : 12.1%, waste: 2.3%, geothermal energy: 0.5%) and non-renewable
waste for 2.4%. Production increased by 20% between 2005 and 2022 3 . Italy's heat
production reaches 231 PJ in 2022. In 2021, it was 224 PJ , or 1.3 % of the world
total ( 11th in the world), to compare with Germany: 470 PJ ( 3rd ) . rank), France:
191 PJ ( 13th rank ) and Russia, world number 2: 5,619 PJ (32.3%, behind China) 3 .
Energy policy
In July 2020, the government of Giuseppe Conte adopted a tax system called
“superbonus”, intended to facilitate work for the energy transition ranging from
thermal insulation to solar panels through the replacement of windows. This system
takes the form of a tax credit spread over five years. It is equal to 110% of the
investment amount and is transferable: certain households in financial difficulty have
the possibility of transferring this tax credit to construction companies which resell
them to a banking establishment, the latter being responsible for subsequently
recovering money from the state. This measure turned out to be very costly:
according to the National Energy Efficiency Agency, the cumulative amount of
investments approved for the tax deduction is around € 65.2 billion , or 3.5% of
GDP. The government of Giorgia Meloni reduces the tax credit to 90% of the amount
of the work instead of 110% and subjects it to resource conditions, then in mid-
February 2023, it ends the transferability of these credits. tax 30 .
Environmental impact
Greenhouse gas emissions
In 2022, energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Italy amounted to 306
Mt CO 2eq, or 12% of European Union emissions, behind Germany (617 Mt , or
24.1%) and ahead of Poland (295 Mt ) and France 284 Mt. In 2021, they were
320 Mt , or 0.9% of global emissions, far behind China (30.3%), the United States
(13.4%), India (6.5%), Russia (6.0%), Japan (2.7%) and Germany (1.7%); the
European Union totaled 7.1% G 1 .
CO2 emissionsrelated to energy
emissionsof Italy linked to energy reached 5.03 t per capita in 2022, 25% higher
CO 2
than those of France: 4.03 t . In 2021, they were 5.24 tonnes, 23% higher than the
world average: 4.26 t/inhabitant . Compared to other major economic powers, Italy
emits much less CO 2per capita than the United States: 13.76 t/inhabitant ,
Germany: 7.50 t/inhabitant and China: 7.07 t/inhabitant G 6 .

Other references:

1. ↑Return higher to:a b c d e f g h i j k l m et n (en) Energy Statistics Data Browser: Italy - Balances
2022 [ archive ] , International Energy Agency , December 21, 2023.
2. ↑Return higher to:a and b World Development Indicators - Italy: population [ archive ] , World Bank .
3. ↑Return higher to:a b c d e f g h i et j (en) Energy Statistics Data Browser: Italy - Electricity 2022 [ archive ] , International
Energy Agency , December 21, 2023.
4. ↑ (en) Snapshot of Global PV Markets 2023 [ archive ] [PDF] , International Energy Agency -Photovoltaic
Power Systems Program (PVPS), April 2023, page 14.
5. ↑Return higher to:a and b (de) Kurzstudie Reserven, Ressourcen und Verfügbarkeit von Energierohstoffen
2011 [ archive ] (pages 38, 48, 58), Federal Agency for Earth Sciences and Raw Materials (BGR),
December 8, 2011.
6. ↑ Sylvain Zibber, “ The Italian economy 1895 – 1914 (1/2) [ archive ] ”, on Les Yeux du Monde ,April 24,
2012
7. ↑ Priolo Gargallo refinery ISAB NORD [ archive ] , Euro-petrol.
8. ↑ Company profile [ archive ] , Saras.
9. ↑ SONATRACH signs an agreement with Esso Italiana (Exxonmobil group) for the acquisition of the
Augusta refinery and three oil terminals [ archive ] , Euro-pétrole, May 9, 2018.
10. ↑ From refinery to biorefinery [ archive ] , ENI, 2020.
11. ↑ Transitgas and Fluxys want to increase the potential of the Swiss gas pipeline [ archive ]
12. ↑ (in) TAP official website. [ archive ]
13. ↑ The Trans Adriatic Pipeline is Complete [ archive ] , TAP, October 12, 2020.
14. ↑ Federal Office of Energy (Switzerland), Energeia Magazine, May 2009, Italy in search of greater
energy autonomy .
15. ↑Return higher to:a b c and d (it) Dati Generali [ archive ] , Terna , 2019.
16. ↑ The “Eugenio Montale” power plant [ archive ] , on the ENEL website .
17. ↑ (it) Dati statistici - Impianti di generazione [ archive ] , pages 33, 54, 62-64, Terna website
18. ↑ Enel launches a call for projects for 23 power plants [ archive ] , Les Échos of July 15, 2015.
19. ↑Return higher to:a b and c Italian Enel promises the end of fossil power plants in 2035 [ archive ] , Les Échos ,
August 9, 2017.
20. ↑ Yann Le Guernigou , “ EDF will help Enel to build EPR power plants in Italy ”, Bourse.fr ,February 24,
2009 ( read online [ archive ] , consulted onDecember 21, 2009).
21. ↑ Nuclear: Italy will do without [ archive ] , newspaper Libération of 04/20/2011.
22. ↑ In Italy, nuclear power creates controversy at the top of the State [ archive ] , Les Échos , September 3,
2021.
23. ↑ Italy lifts the nuclear taboo [ archive ] , Les Échos , December 23, 2021.
24. ↑ Nuclear power is coming back into favor among Europeans [ archive ] , Les Échos , March 28, 2023.
25. ↑ Italy's new look at nuclear power [ archive ] , SFEN , October 27, 2023.
26. ↑ Italian government begins discussions to reintroduce nuclear energy [ archive ] , EurActiv , September
22, 2023.
27. ↑Return higher to:a and b (it) [PDF] Rapporto Statistico Impianti a fonti rinnovabili - Anno 2012 [ archive ] , GSE
website (see pages 13, 47, 66 and 78).
28. ↑ (en) About Terna [ archive ] , English version of the Terna site.
29. ↑ (en) Energy Statistics Data Browser - Electricity consumption per capita, France 1990-
2022 [ archive ] , International Energy Agency , December 21, 2023.
30. ↑ Italy forced to significantly increase its public deficit [ archive ] , Les Échos , March 1, 2023.