Agenda
Challenges
Global climate change and the limited access to resources, especially with respect to oil, will set the agenda for climate and energy policy in the years to come. Climate change places massive demands for reductions on greenhouse gas emissions, and on our use of coal, oil and natural gas. At the same time, the price of these fuels must be expected to rise, when the remaining resources have to meet increasing demand.
According to the 2008 BP Statistical Energy Survey, Italy had proved oil reserves of 0.781 billion barrels at the end of 2007 or 0.06 % of the world's reserves. According to the 2008 BP Statistical Energy Survey, Italy produced an average of 121.6 thousand barrels of crude oil per day in 2007, 0.15% of the world total and a change of 1.5 % compared to 2006. Italy is a large consumer and importer of oil.
According to the 2008 BP Statistical Energy Survey, Italy consumed an average of 1745.06 thousand barrels a day of oil in 2007, 2.1% of the world total and a change from 2006 of -67.08 tbpd. Eni is the largest oil and natural gas company in Italy.
Over the past decade natural gas consumption has grown rapidly. According to the 2008 BP Statistical Energy Survey, Italy had 2007 proved natural gas reserves of 0.08 trillion cubic metres, 0.05% of the world total, and natural gas production of 8.9 billion cubic metres, 0.3% of the world total. During the same period, Italy consumed of 77.83 billion cubic metres of natural gas, 2.65% of the world total.
Political
In April 2007, the European Commission and representatives of seven European governments signed an agreement to begin construction of the Pan-European Pipeline (also known as the Constanta-Trieste Pipeline), which would link Constanta, Romania with Trieste, Italy, allowing crude oil from the Black Sea region to bypass the congested Bosporus Straits. According to the 2008 BP Statistical Energy Survey, Italy had a 2007 refinery capacity of 2329 thousand barrels a day, 2.64% of the world total.
Status
Growth
In 2004, economic activity in Italy grew at a lower rate compared with other euro-zone economies. Despite the unpretentious growth in levels of activities and relatively high values in the cost of energy, a potential scenario of the Italian energy system proves an average period trend towards a constant increase in energy consumption (with an average annual growth slightly exceeding 1% up until 2020) and emission levels (in a lower percentage).
On a medium-long term natural gas seems to be destined to replace petrol as the most important main source, until it reaches and exceeds the threshold of 40% of total consumption, while petrol tends to remain stable at a value of between 35% and 40%. The weight of renewable sources will increase lightly (always well below 10% of the total).
Targets
National targets are the improvement of energy efficiency, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the security of energy supply and spread of the renewable energy sources.
The promotion of energy efficiency in end-use sectors is one key tool to curb polluting atmospheric emissions and, in particular, greenhouse gas emissions from the energy system. The first step in this way were the Law Decrees enacted by the Ministry of Production Activities of 20th July 2004.
The system introduced by these decrees foresees that the energy and natural gas suppliers have to achieve an obliged quantity of primary energy savings for the years 2005-2009, starting from 1st January 2005.
The Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas certified the achievement of the energy savings target for 2005 and 2006: in these two years the savings was 500,000 toe while the target had to be 156,000 toe in 2005 and 312,000 in 2006.
The actions for the energy savings were in electrical uses (lamps and electrical appliances with low consumption) and thermic uses (boiler with high efficiency, action on building covering) of civil sector, in energy production and distribution system in civil sector (photovoltaic panels, district heating), in improvement of efficiency in public lighting and various actions in industry. The achievement of the target avoided emissions for over 1,360,000 tonne of CO2.
Budget
History
Italy allocated about US $ 14 billion (2002 prices) to energy RD&D from 1977 to 2002. Budget outlays in 2002 were US $ 270 million. Funding for RD&D fell considerably in the late 1980s, due primarily to a decline in funding for nuclear research. The share of funding for renewable RD&D, however increased considerably. The share averaged between 3% and 5% in the 1970s and 1980s, but rose to 15% in the mid-1990s. There was no budget data reported for energy RD&D in 1992 and 1999.
The budget for renewable energy RD&D was US$ 49 million in 2002. In Italy some US$ 890 million was allocated to renewable energy RD&D from 1977 to 2002. Over the period, for solar PV was 42% of the budget. Another 18% was budgeted for wind research and some 17% for biomass research. The RD&D renewable budget increased substantially in 1984, mostly because funding for solar PV research quadrupled. Italy has the fourth largest budget among IEA countries for solar PV.
Current
More recently, budget outlays for RD&D of solar-thermal electric technologies have increased. In 2002, RD&D on solar-thermal electric received more than 62% of the renewable energy RD&D budget.
Key Policies
Recent Legislation
In the recent past, Italian energy policy was marked by the absence of a clear integrated long-term vision for the development of the sector. This, however, has the potential to change following the mid-2009 introduction of Law 99/2009. The new National Energy Strategy that will be developed as part of the implementation of Law no. 99/2009 can provide Italy with means by which a clear integrated long-term vision can emerge.
The legislative basis for this new policy attains the following objectives:
a. Improvement of the national energy system’s competitiveness and development of its infrastructures with a view to common European internal market.
b. Promotion of renewable sources of energy and of efficiency.
c. Construction of nuclear energy plants on the national territory, including promotion of nuclear research on Generation IV and on fusion.
d. Increase of investment in research and development in energy and participation in international agreements on technological cooperation.
e. Guarantees on adequate levels of health protection of the population and of workers.
Miscellaneous
Hydropower
The most important Renewable Energy Source (RES) in Italy is hydropower, contributing to 16.6% of total gross electricity production of the country. Italy has also large geothermal resources, both high and low temperature: it is the most important producer of geothermal electricity in Europe.
Despite strong growth in sectors such as onshore wind, biogas and biodiesel, Italy is far from the targets. Firstly, there is a large element of uncertainty due to political changes and ambiguities in current policy design. Secondly, there are administrative constraints such as complex authorization procedures at local level. Thirdly, there are financial barriers such as high grid connection costs.
Transition to Globalisation
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Globalisation > Economy > Energy > Sources > Renewable > Hydro
Transition to Political Tools
EU Renewable Energy Policy
European leaders signed up to a binding EU-wide target to source 20% of their energy needs from renewables, including biomass, hydro, wind and solar power, by 2020. To meet this objective, they also agreed on a new directive to promote renewable energies, which set individual targets for each member state.
Political Tools > Regional > Europe > EU > Dom. Policies > Economy > Energy > Renewable
Transition to Political Actors
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Political Actors > Civil society > NGOs > Energy
