The Energy and Climate Plan presented in Brussels does not convince environmentalists

Last Thursday the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security forwarded to Brussels the proposal to update the Integrated national energy and climate plan. Sending the proposal to Brussels starts the process of updating the Plan, with thedefinitive approval of the new text expected by June 2024.

The Integrated National Plan for Energy and Climate sets national goals for 2030 on energy efficiency, renewable sources and the reduction of CO emissions₂as well as the objectives in terms of energy security, interconnections, the single energy market and competitiveness, development and sustainable mobility, outlining for each of them the measures that will be implemented to ensure their achievement.

The note with which Mase commented on the sending of the Pniec reports that the text provides for “a share of 40% of renewables in gross final energy consumption which rises to 65% for electricity consumption only. 37% of energy from renewables for heating and cooling, 31% in transport, 42% of hydrogen from renewables for industrial uses“.

For Pichetto Fratin “With this text, the result of intense work by Mase, we want to indicate a path to the transition that is realistic and not unrealistic, therefore sustainable for the Italian economic system. It is a document that confirms Italy’s commitment to the climate and for energy security”.

However, outside the government majority, there are few voices applauding the proposed update of the Pniec. In recent days there have been comments ranging from total rejection (“The Plan does not comply with the climate objectives set by the EU and, importantly, sanctions the transformation of Italy into a European gas hub, through the construction of new and gas pipelines” he wrote for example Angelo Bonelli of Green Europe) to requests to review certain aspects of the document.

In summary some of the main findings made to Pniec by associations and experts.

Legambiente: “Italy with the handbrake”

After the initial draft of the Pniec, the association had published a proposal document, in which it was underlined that “the Plan must have the ambition to really contribute to attacking the climate emergency” and that the first draft sent to Brussels did not went in this direction because “it does not envisage a long-term strategy or an overall objective for reducing emissions by 2030”. Now Stephen Ciafanipresident of Legambiente, observes on the update: “After the climatic disasters on the national territory in recent years, from the Vaia storm in the north-east of 2018 to the flood in Emilia-Romagna in recent months, and after the crazy bills of last two years, we would have expected a courageous plan with ambitious but within reach goals for Italy, to fight the climate emergency and to quickly make our country independent from abroad. the goal is the decarbonisation of the electricity system by 2035, while our Pniec confirms the idea of ​​Italy as a gas hub and place of production of fuel for endothermic engines. Italy continues to go with the handbrake on, while the “Major Italian environmental associations and the Confindustria association Elettricità Futura want to put their foot on the accelerator. We really can’t understand why the government is sovereign over all policies except energy”.

Greenpeace: “It is outside the European objectives”

The association had already rejected the first version of the Plan: “Italy is certainly not on the right track to comply with the Paris Agreements. At a first reading of the text proposed by the government, almost insignificant increases can be seen for the objectives of energy efficiency and thermal renewableswhile the gasone of those responsible for the climate crisis, continues to be the undisputed master of our country’s future,” he said Luca Jacoboni, head of the energy and climate campaign of Greenpeace Italy. Yesterday the director of Greenpeace Italy, Joseph Onufrio he added: “The proposal of the new Pniec is outside the European objectives (Fit for 55) on electric renewables: we are 20 points below the proposals of the (electricity) industry and the strategy is always the same: to preserve as much as possible the gas market”.

ECCØ: “It needs to be reviewed and updated”

In recent months, the Italian think tank dedicated to energy transition and climate change has released numerous studies and data relating to the Pniec. According to Eccø, a revision of the first draft is necessary because in its first formulation the Plan “is not in line with respect to the European targets and needs an update on three main lines: utility compared to the energy and climate objectives, transversality of policies and effectiveness in achieving the expected results“. About sending the update Eccø comments: “We hope it can overcome the limitations of the old Pniec approach, especially in its implementation. We are at the beginning of a process that will have to actively involve all those involved in the implementation of the Plan. European institutions will also have to address the complexities of decarbonisation, taking into account the investment capacity of individual states, regardless of the country’s fiscal space. Resources that will have to be accompanied by targeted financing policies and instruments for an effective reduction in emissions”.

Annalisa Corrado: “The right does not believe in the ecological transition”

The engineer and activist Annalisa Corrado, head of Climate and Ecological Conversion Democratic Party, underlines that on the Plan the government “limited itself to consultations through a questionnaire” despite the request “in Parliament, with question time and parliamentary questions, that the guidelines of the new Pniec be shared, but we have not received any response or willingness to discuss”. For Corrado “the aggregate numbers presented to the press with great fanfare are actually figures that show timidity. The right does not believe in the ecological transition. The government has put thetarget of 65% renewables for electricity consumption, but we believe we can easily reach 80% and even 40% of final consumption from clean energy sources is a low figure. Spain, which also sent its plan, speaks of 48% for final consumption and 81% of electricity consumption. Those are possible goals.”

WWF Italy: “Civil society forgotten by the government”

Also Mariagrazia Midulla, climate and energy manager of WWF Italy, complains about the government’s lack of transparency on the update proposal sent to Brussels on 29 June. “I see that the document sent to Brussels – that is, the summary of a document that will come – is on energy agencies and I imagine on some other information site, – he writes on Twitter – but this is not the correct participatory path. Moreover, it had to be sent to the Parliament or not?” Previously Midulla had observed: “How can civil society exercise its essential role in democracies, if neither the National Energy-Climate Plan nor the draft of Pniec are available, but only press releases and interviews?”.

WWF Italy had also presented a document to the government when the consultation on the Mase website was opened, underlining that “The form of the proposed consultation did not seem to be an exhaustive tool due to the thickness and scope of the most important strategic document in the climate field – energy which every European country is called upon to adopt, as part of the energy-climate strategy implemented by the European Union. It should be noted that in the questionnaire important structural elements of the Pniec are not put in consultation, but a contribution is substantially requested supplementary to the Plan on policy instruments, which have not yet been described in their implementation methods”.

Last generation: “Investments in fossil fuels 9 times more than in renewables”

The activists of Last generationwho have long been asking Minister Pichetto Fratin for a discussion, who said he was willing to meet them, commented via social media “Mase sent the updated Pniec to Brussels (with a procedure that is not very transparent for many). With that document, Italy undertakes, among other things, to cover 65% of electricity consumption through renewable energies.We wonder how this goal will be achieved, if they continue to invest in fossil 9 times more than in renewables and in efficiency“. On its website, Ultima Generazione points out that “The Italian government invests in fossil energy much more than it does with renewable energies. In 2021, 41.8 billion euros were allocated to fossil fuels in Italy. A good 7.2 billion euros more than the previous year. In 2022 the numbers are even greater.”