EK 130 Wind

Peter Tranoris
Grace EK132

12/03/12

Italy has many opportunities available in the field of renewable energy. Its use of renewable energy sources is increasing. With large onshore and offshore wind resources, especially in southern Italy, wind energy can be a major contributor to Italian energy production. Despite growth, Italy’s wind and other renewable energy sources are not being used to their full ability. A combination of government and bureaucratic hurdles, along with corruption, stand in the way, and may even halt the growth of the renewable energy industry. As Italy’s dependence on foreign sources of energy grows, the country needs to take more steps to grow its wind energy industry.

In recent years Italy has taken steps to improve their use of renewable energy sources. In the past, the majority of renewable energy produced by Italy was from hydropower and geothermal sources. Wind power output has increased steadily for the past decade, recently passing geothermal output (Going with the Wind). Subsidies and feed in tariffs (FiT) are growing the solar energy industry, and FiTs are planned to take effect next year for the wind energy industry. FiTs were a major contributor to the success of renewable energy in other European countries (Italy: Renewable Energy Law Adopted). In addition, development has begun for Italy’s first offshore wind projects (C., Tricoli).

In spite of what seems to be a successful wind energy policy, government regulations are actually negatively affecting the renewable energy industry. Bureaucratic hurdles and a complicated permitting process have limited the number of large wind farms built (Rosenthal). With all of the bureaucratic problems, the only reason the wind energy industry has grown rapidly has been through massive government subsidies, considered the most generous in the world (Meo). These incentives have risen to over six billion euros a year (Raizada). With growing budget deficits and the effects of the recession, the new Italian government is cutting back on spending, and implementing a feed in tariff system for wind energy. The news of a FiT for the wind energy worries some in the energy industry. The new FiT will reportedly come with a “less generous, more bureaucratic system,” which will lead to a “strong reduction in new wind capacity” (O’Brian). Instead of helping Italy as it did in other European countries, a FiT may stop progress in the wind energy industry, cutting off the subsidies it relied on.

The massive subsidies of the past years have led to negative side-effects in the wind industry. The large government handouts have attracted the mafia and other illegitimate entrepreneurs. In Italy “the Mafia has years of expertise at buying corrupt politicians and intimidating rivals,” leading to corruption at all levels of the wind energy industry (Meo). The mafia has been fraudulently skimming money from the subsidies, costing the public as much as 35 billion euros over the past decade (Italy: Renewable Energy Law Adopted). Recently, the government had to seize several wind farms in Sicily, after the mafia invested illegally in them (O’Brian). So called “Clean-Energy” schemes have led to wind farms standing derelict or never being constructed in the first place. If corruption continues, it could greatly affect the wind energy industry, and it is already negatively affecting public opinion of wind turbines in areas of southern Italy (Meo).

Figure 1 shows that the gains in wind energy have done little to increase the overall share of renewable energy sources compared to overall energy production (Renewable Energy Policy Review). While production of wind energy rises, decreases in other sectors, such as hydropower has occurred. This leaves Italy highly dependent on other sources on energy, including foreign energy sources, which account for almost 86% of its total energy needs, the highest of any G8 country (Going with the Wind). With the closing of its last nuclear power plants in the 1990s, and recent public referendums against nuclear power, Italy has had to directly import electricity from its neighbor France. There are few remaining options available, except for needed increases in wind and solar power.

Despite all of the efforts taken to grow the wind industry over the past decade, there is much more Italy can do. Unsustainable past government policies and harsh new policies threaten the gains made, and corruption is as much a problem as ever. If Italy wants to lessen its dependence on foreign energy sources, it will have to do more to encourage affordable, steady, and sustainable growth in the wind energy industry, lessening regulations and bureaucratic red tape.

Works Cited

C., Tricoli and Barsanti M. and Delbono I. “Offshore wind farms along the Italian coasts: a first selection of suitable areas based on wind and bathymetric data.”Owemes (2006). n. pag. Web. 1 Dec 2012.

“Going with the Wind: Italy tries to wean itself off imported energy—but it has a long way to go”. The Economist. 4 Jul. 2009. Web. 1 Dec 2012.

Italy: Renewable Energy Law Adopted. Global Legal Monitor. Library of Congress. 25 Mar. 2011. Web 1 Dec. 2012.

Meo, Nick and Nick Squires. “Mafia cash in on lucrative EU wind farm handouts— especially in Sicily.” The Telegraph. 5 Sept. 2010. Web. 1 Dec 2012.

O’Brian, Heather. “Italian legislation forces wind farm sales.” Wind Power Monthly. 2 Oct. 2012. Web. 1 Dec 2012.

Pirazzi, Luciano, and Cesare Silvi. “Wind Power in Italy from the Late 1970s to the Present.” Gruppo per la storia dell’energia solare. n. pag. Web. 1 Dec 2012.

Raizada, Rachana. “Will Italy’s FiTs Survive the Fall of Berlusconi?” Renewable Energy World.com. 21 Feb. 2012. Web. 1 Dec 2012.

“Renewable Energy Policy Review” European Renewable Energy Council. Mar. 2009. Web. 1 Dec. 2012

Rosenthal, Elisabeth. “Thinking Small, and Still Smaller, on Wind Power.” The New York Times. 29 Sept. 2010. Web. 1 Dec 2012.