Energy in Italy

Energy in Italy comes mostly from fossil fuels. The main resources used are petroleum for transportation, natural gas for electricity and heating, and coal. Italy does not have many of its own energy resources, so it imports most of what it uses.

A lot of Italy's electricity comes from other countries, especially from Switzerland and France. Over 35% of Italy's total energy is used to make electricity, and this number has been growing since the 1970s.

Today, most electricity in Italy is made using natural gas, which provides more than half of the country's electric power. In the past, hydroelectric power was the main source of electricity, before 1960. Recently, wind and solar power have grown fast, and Italy is now one of the world's leaders in producing clean, renewable energy.

Overview

See also: Renewable energy in Italy

Energy in Italy mostly comes from fossil fuels. The most used resources are petroleum for transportation, natural gas for electricity and heating, coal, and renewables. Most electricity in Italy is made from natural gas.

Another important source used to be hydroelectric power. The first power plant in continental Europe opened in Milan in 1883.

In recent years, Italy has become a big producer of renewable energy. Wind power, hydroelectricity, and geothermal power are important electricity sources. Italy was the first country to use geothermal energy for electricity, with the first plant built in Tuscany. Solar energy has also grown a lot.

Italy stopped using nuclear power in the 1980s. Most people voted to end nuclear power, so the government closed the plants. However, Italy still works with nuclear power in other countries.

General statistics

International comparisons

In rankings by the International Energy Agency, Italy is among the top ten countries in the world for many energy measures.

Energy resources

Italy has some fossil fuels, but they are not very large. Fossil fuels include oil, natural gas, and coal. Italy uses oil mostly for transportation, natural gas for making electricity and heating, and coal for a small part of its energy needs.

Italy does not produce enough energy to meet all its needs and must import a lot. Most of its energy comes from other countries. For example, Italy imported almost all of its oil and natural gas because it does not have enough of its own. Italy also has some renewable energy sources, like hydroelectric power in the Alps and solar power, especially in southern regions like Sicily and Sardinia. However, even with these, Italy still needs to import most of its energy.

Energy consumption

From primary energy consumed to final energy consumed

Primary energy consumption

In 2018, Italy used 172.3 Mtoe of energy. Most of this energy came from fossil fuels, which made up 73.9% of the total. This includes coal, oil, and natural gas. Renewable energy sources covered only 20.5% of Italy's needs. Per person, Italy used 103.4 GJ of energy in 2019.

Renewable energy sources provided 34.5% of Italy's electricity. This includes energy from biomass and heat pumps.

Final energy consumption

Breakdown by source

In 2018, the final energy used after processing was 127.3 Mtoe. Most of this energy still came from fossil fuels. This includes coal, oil, and natural gas. Thermal renewable energies made up 7.0%, and electricity accounted for 19.8%.

The use of renewable energies changed over time.

Breakdown by sector

Final energy use was divided among different areas:

• Non-energy uses;
• Bunkers: 3.15 Mtoe;
• Domestic use, including:
  • Industry;
  • Transport;
  • Residential and tertiary;
  • Agriculture.

Note: The International Energy Agency does not count international bunkers as domestic use.

Electricity

Main article: Electricity sector in Italy

See also: Renewable energy in Italy § Electricity sector

In 2014, Italy used a lot of electricity—about 291,083 terawatt-hours. Most of this electricity came from natural gas and water power. Italy does not use nuclear power anymore.

Italy was also the first country to use geothermal energy to make electricity. The first geothermal power plant was built in Tuscany, and all the geothermal plants in Italy are still there. In 2014, geothermal energy provided about 5.92 terawatt-hours of electricity.

District heating

District heating is used in many places in Europe and has started to grow in Italy since the 1970s. The first Italian city to use it was Brescia in 1972, and Turin joined in 1982. Turin now has one of the largest district heating systems in Italy and Europe. The Italian region with the most district heating is Lombardy.

Most of the heat comes from cogeneration plants, with a small amount from boiler rooms. This heating helps industries, homes, and other buildings. The heat comes from different sources like natural gas, biomass, and waste.

Emissions

Italy's CO₂ emissions were high in 2019.

The International Energy Agency reported emissions for 2019.

Energy-related CO₂ emissions in Italy changed over time.

Per person, Italy's emissions were lower than the European Union average in 2018.