The European Commission has authorized Italy to spend up to a maximum of 35.3 billion euros, to support the production of renewable energy, under state aid rules. Could be requested by beneficiaries by 2028 and then paid out over 20 years, with one average annual expenditure of 1.85 billion. “There will be a type of open competition where different parties will be able to bid for this money so let’s say it is more of a container and a maximum amount,” explained the spokeswoman for the community executive Lea Zuber. The goal is to raise the electricity production capacity from renewables 4 590 MW in the next 4 years. Currently the installed capacity is around 40 thousand MW.
The scheme, we read in a note from the Commission, contributes to the achievement of the EU strategic objectives related to the European Green Dealwhile helping to end Russia’s dependence on fossil fuels and to accelerate the green transition. Italy, the Commission recalls, will support the construction of new power plants using innovative and not yet mature technologies, such as geothermal energywind energy offshore (floating or fixed), thermodynamic solar energy, thefloating solar energy, tides, wave motion and other marine energies as well as biogas and biomass. Depending on the technology, the deadline for the plants to become operational varies from 31 to 60 months.
We pay – But where will the potential 35 billion come from? that can be used for this purpose? With an additional charge on bills paid by consumers. There is no mention of other solutions, for example a levy on those who produce from fossil fuels or the most polluting companies. Already today Italians pay their bills the so-called system charges which serve for various purposes including the safety of old nuclear plants or subsidies for the railway sector but the largest part is intended for incentives for renewables. They account for approximately a fifth of the total cost of the bill and produce a total annual revenue of between 12 and almost 16 billion (depends on the price of energy) of which approximately 80% is allocated to renewables.
The goal can certainly be shared but the commitment it’s not insignificantespecially if we consider that Italian families they pay some of the highest bills in Europe (and receive some of the lowest wages). It is true that, in perspective, an enhanced fleet of renewable energy plants could help reduce the cost of energy but the factors at play over 20 years are many and unpredictable. It is therefore a question of understanding whether, with the green light for the new planthe potential burden borne by consumers whether it is destined to rise further or whether some sort of replacement will take place.
In the first case it would be a matter of adding up to just under 2 billion euros per year. A sum not such as to distort the size of the amounts but still a another “load” on the shoulders of consumers. It wouldn’t mean an automatic increase in bills, the total amount of which depends primarily on the cost of raw materials (gas, oil, etc), but of an increase in one of the components of the final tariff.
Asked by IlFattoQuotidiano.it on this point, the Ministry of the Environment and Ecological Transition he responds thus: “The 35 billion are an estimate of the cost of the measure considering an average energy price of €70/mwh for the entire period of validity of the measure considering the average useful life of the plants (which varies between 20 and 25 years depending on the technologies). Since the incentive is created through a two-way difference contract, the actual cost of the measure will be linked to the actual price of energy. Therefore for prices above €70/Mwh, as currently happens, the cost will be lower. For energy values higher than the tariffs awarded during the auction, it is even expected that the operators will return the difference to the system, the costs will be worth the component ASOS on the bill“.
Translation: Your spending (over the course of 20 years) could be less than 35 billion since if operators can sell the current at a higher price of the 70 euros a sort of compensation occurs per megawatt hour. However the withdrawal of funds (many or few) it will add up effectively to the already existing system costs. In the evening the ministry then issued a note in which it declines any responsibility, underlining that the cost “depends mainly on the objective of supporting up to 3.8 Gw of offshore wind power, a particularly expensive technology”, and “the choice of this objective was hired before October 2022.” That is, before the change of government.
