Energy in Italy: needs and resources 

An overview of the current state of energy

In order for Italy to have enough methane for house heating, our country needs to import it from foreign countries, such as the Netherlands, Algeria and Russia.

According to the Italian Authority for energy, in 2004 Italy used 195.5 mtep (an mtep is the energy of one million tonnes oil equivalent 1 tep= 10,000,000 kcal= 42 billion joules) of energy, of which 143.4 consisted of electricity and transports needs, whereas 52 mtep were simply wasted by other activities in the country. Basically, one third of the total energy needed by Italy was thrown away. Given that Italy produces by itself only 30 mtep of energy, it has to import 165.5 mtep - that is, the 84.6 % of the total amount - from foreign countries. As far as the production of energy is concerned, Italy depends on 45% on oil (of which 31% imported from Lybia, 41% from other countries of the Middle East, 11% from the former Soviet Union and 17% from other countries) and on 32% on gas to produce energy, while the rest is produced thanks to coal, hydroenergy and renewables resources. Oil is mainly used in transports and less used by industries to produce electicity. As a matter of fact, most of the electricity produced by Italy is due to gas (33.4%), renewable energy resources (17.9%), carbon (17.2%, coming from the U.S, Australia and South Africa) and oil (17%). 

Energy production in 2004:

Source

Even though the European Union (through the opening of its market) encouraged Italy to make its energy use more efficient and less carbon-intensive, a huge part of the energy is actually wasted. 

Italy could potencially produce 69.3 mtep of energy, but a huge amount of them (44.4 mtep !) gets lost because of some misfunctions of the transport system. This has happened partly because until recent times competition on the production of energy has been very low. Basically, the market was held only by two state companies, the ENEL (state electricity company) and the ENI (state hydrocarbon company). Moreover, the absence of control did not help to make the electric grid efficient enough. At present, the situation is improving to some extent for two main reasons. Firstly, those two companies were transformed into joint stock companies, which are mostly privately run. Secondly, the Italian Government created the Authority for Electricity and Gas, which works to ensure fair competition, thus forcing industries to work better.     

Given the European standards, Italy energy taxes are quite high if compared with those of other nations, since they are based on progressive tariffs: the more you consume, the more you pay. This is precisely one of the most significant aspects of the Italian energy policy, as the way tariffes are calculated helpes promoting energy savings, as well as reducing imports. That is why Italy is one of the lowest energy intensity countries in the world. 

Which are the main energy resources used in Italy?

Electric power is one of the energy resources Italy uses to satisfy its energy needs, but, unfortunately, it does not meet completely national needs, since its production is not sufficient, thus forcing the government to buy it from foreign countries.

Hydrocarbon energy is a chemical compound which is used to create part of the electric power that is necessary to meet national needs, as well as for the means of transport and home heating.

Methane is largely imported by Italy from foreign countries (Russia, Algeria and the Netherlands) and is one of the least polluting energy resources. That is why vehicles powered by methane can travel during "traffic controlled hours", which are put into effect by many cities to moderate pollution. Unfortunately, there are not so many methane cars circulating in Italy, while, on the other hand, there are still more than 11 thousand cars without any catalyzing system.

Sources

http://www.promozione-italia.com/eng-energy/energy-italy.php

http://www.ecoage.com/situazione-energia-italia-2004.htm

http://energytrends.pnl.gov/italy/it004.htm