Italy Minister holds meeting with Geothermal Technical Table

Italian flag over Rome, Italy (source: flickr/ pocheco, creative commons)

Carlo Cariaga 26 Jan 2023

On 24 January 2023, a meeting was held between Italy’s Minister of the Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Pichetto Fratin and the Geothermal Technical Table. The meeting was held in Rome and was coordinate by the Italian Geothermal Union (UGI).

Present during the meeting was Giampaolo Vecchiesci (Enel Green Power), Bruno Della Vedova (UGI), Lorenzo Spadoni (AIRU), Ernst Gostner (FRI-EL Green Power), Emanuele Emani (CNG), and Fausto Batini (Magma Energy Italia, Rete Geotermica).

Among the points discussed in the meeting were the geothermal potential of Italy, the industry’s 2030 objectives, and the measures necessary to get the geothermal sector off the ground. Bruno Della Vedova of UGI shared his insight on the results of the meeting.

Italy needs to update renewable energy action plans

The EU has called on Member States to up the National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAP) by 2030. For Italy, this amounts to an update of the National Integrated Plan for Energy and Climate (PNIEC). The previous Environment Minister had started this work in 2021 but was unable to reach its conclusion.

Della Vedova emphasizes the importance of including heating in the revised plan. It is essential that each Member State draws up a Thermal Plan that will guide the transition of air conditioning and heating from being powered by fossil fuels to being powered by renewable sources, an area where geothermal plays an important role.

Fer 2 decree is in the pipeline

The Fer 2 decree is the proposed legislation that regulates the incentives for the construction of geothermal, biomass, biogas, solar, and offshore wind plants. According to the Minister, the degree has been examined by the EU for compatibility checks and should be in the finishing stage by March.

The first draft of the decree proposed incentives for up to 40 MW of total re-entry plants. The UGI had counter-proposed for the incentives to reach up to 100 MW, but they expect the final result to be at 60 MW. The Fer 2 is expected to provide incentives of EUR 100 per MWh for traditional plants and EUR 200 per MWh for total re-entry plants.

However, it is not yet clear whether the reward criteria applied for the 2016 quota will be maintained, i.e. an additional EUR 30 per MWh for the first 10 MW installed in a greenfield area and another EUR 30 per MWh for combined heat and power plants.

Deciding on expiring concessions

The Minister assured the group that there will soon be a decision on the geothermal concessions in Tuscany that are set to expire in 2024. The merits of the alternatives are still being debated, even if there are no requirements in European countries for the tender of expiring concessions.

“Of course, one cannot think of blocking the sector by arranging a European tender immediately. First we need to identify a common goal, realistically evaluating what to do and when: if the goal is to strengthen geothermal energy, we need regulatory instruments that do not block its development,” said Della Vedova.

Setting realistic goals

During the meeting, the group showed the Minister a map of geothermal potential in Italy. Indeed, geothermal in Italy is not an exclusive resource in Tuscany. Geothermal can be found in large parts of the country – from Veneto to Emilia, passing from Milan to the whole Tyrrhenian area, Sardinia, and Sicily.

The group presented the Minister with a framework that targets 400 MW of installed capacity nationwide within a decade. Over 200 MW of this will be by Enel Green Power with the balance to be developed by other companies and operators.

The group notes that Italy, being the homeland of geothermal technologies, cannot continue to stand still in terms of geothermal development. To foster a more encouraging environment for investors, there is a very pressing need to a clearer and more harmonized legislative and regulatory framework.

Source: Greenreport.it