Milan, 2 July 2024 – Good but not very good. In Italy, a country certainly not lacking in sunshine, the photovoltaic is struggling to take off and take the place it deserves need (costs, wars, consumption of raw materials…) and environmental respect (pollution and climate change), deserves it.
In fact, 2023 will be a record year for energy production from renewable sources, with a total of 5.7 GW achieved, 5.2 from photovoltaicsThe data were collected in the Renewable Energy Report 2024drawn up by the Energy & Strategy of the School of Management of the Politecnico di Milano. Important numbers that mark a change of pace compared to 2022, in which overall production stood at 3GW.
“The data was certainly driven by the strength of the superbonus 110%but we are still far from the objectives of decarbonisation set for 2030 by the PNIEC, established at 9GW per year of new installations from renewables” specifies Daniele Iudicone, CEO of IMC Holdingto which the belongs Simple Photovoltaic brandand a great expert in renewable energy.
The difficulty in reaching the 9GW per year ceiling lies, according to the report, in the poor national capacity to build large-scale systems: “95% of new installations concern small-scale plants and also covers half of the additional power achieved,” continues Iudicone.
Daniel Iudicone
Data also confirmed by the GSE report, according to which during 2023, almost all of the plants that entered into operation were size less than 20 kWcontributing to 43% of the total installed power. While plants larger than 1 MW represent approximately 21% of the operating power.
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“Agrivoltaic and large surfaces destined for renewables are in the grip of the bureaucracy and short-sighted legislation. On the one hand, the controversies and restrictions related to land occupation, on the other, the auctions that often went deserted due to the remuneration rates for the green energy produced that are not aligned with the cost of the plants themselves and the market price of energy”, specifies Daniele Iudicone.
Furthermore, the research by the Polytechnic estimates that these problems could slow down the growth of renewables, putting a sector at risk which, in 2023 alone, generated a turnover of approximately 10 billion euros60% of which remained in companies located in Italy, while 20% in Europe. In addition, 25,000 people work in the related industries among companies that deal with the development, management, maintenance of plants or production of components related to renewables.
So what are the 3 steps needed to unlock the growth of renewables?
“Italy first of all has need for certainties regulations for the sector. Only in this way will we be able to defeat the fear of economic operators to support investments, often significant, for fear that sudden changes in regulation may occur on the fly. Let’s think about what happened with the use of photovoltaics on agricultural land; the European directive confirmed its feasibility, while the Government decree stopped everything. These situations happen cyclically, regardless of the political orientation of the government. We have to be very careful because our potential is enormous, but it should not be wasted”.
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Italy, then, must invest decisively and quickly in the creation of manpower dedicated to the sector. “Europe in recent days has announced the creation of theEuropean Solar Academy which, in the next 3 years, will form 100,000 workers specialized in photovoltaics. The investment, in my opinion, is still not very effective. If photovoltaics were to start running, as hoped, its growth would inevitably be hindered by thelack of qualified professional figures. We need to speed up training.”
“Last but not least, it is essential to carry forward theGreen Energy Educationthrough clear and transparent communication, to make the population understand the advantages and costs of photovoltaicswhat type of system to install, etc. Even in this case the stakes are high, from the point of view of sustainability, ofenergy independence of families and for the green transition of the nation” concludes Daniele Iudicone, CEO of IMC Holding.
