Geothermal Technical Table gearing up for Italy’s geothermal renaissance

Fumaroles in Sasso Pisano, Tuscany, Italy (source: UGI)

The Geothermal Technical Table, coordinated by the Italian Geothermal Union (UGI) and the Italian Urban Heating Association (AIRU), has started a series of dialogues with Italy’s Ministry of the Environment (MASE) to work on the relaunch of geothermal energy as a renewable and strategic energy resource for the country.

Despite Italy’s undisputed role as a technological leader in the use of geothermal energy for over a century and the local skills being recognized globally, the current drafts of the National Integrated Plan for Energy and Climate (PNIEC) sent to European Commission and the FER-2 decree do not adequately recognize the significant potential of geothermal energy as a renewable source, both for the production of electricity and heat.

It is therefore considered necessary to quickly recover a gap that has been created for a few decades now, updating the PNIEC to be sent to Brussels by June 2024 and including a concrete valorization of the geothermal resource. It is essential not only to overcome the barriers that limit the complete development of this energy source, but also to adopt measures such as the simplification of authorization procedures, the stability of the regulatory framework and the implementation of adequate incentives to accelerate industrial investments, in the medium and long term.

The Geothermal Technical Table, established on 24 February 2022 with the support and national and international operators in geothermal heating and power, is working with MASE to draft a national action plan for geothermal energy, from thermal and other services and power production, to the recovery of strategic minerals from geothermal fluids.

The Government’s interest in geothermal energy marks a substantial change of pace but it is now more necessary than ever to make these actions concrete, to lay the foundations for a new geothermal renaissance that our country has been asking for for years and which is now a reality in Europe .

The final meeting, scheduled for February 16th with Minister Pichetto Fratin, will be the key to proposing the launch of a concrete national plan for geothermal energy. The aspiration is for a solution that makes Italy ready for the challenges that await it and that sees geothermal energy as a concrete solution to the national and European energy transition.

Source: Email correspondence