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2024-03-29 13:29

Proposals of Friends of the Earth Italy

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

On May, 27th, Friends of the Earth Italy presented  its "Proposals for new energy efficiency policies", during a busy conference. We suggest reading of the article with which Federico Rendina broke the news on italian daily newspaper “Il Sole 24 Ore” titled: "From Friends of the Earth a shock proposal: cut incentives to photovoltaic to hurl again the energy efficiency. " They took part in the conference ...

Enea Commissioner Giovanni Lelli, the president of the General States of energy efficiency Alessandro Ortis and Marcella Pavan (Authority for Electricity and Gas). After the reports a panel discussion followed with the participation of representatives of energy producers and the world of production including Fernando Pettorossi for COAER, Fabrizio Iaccarino for Enel, Esther Benigni (A2A), Rosanna Fusco for Eni, Roberto Venafro (Edison) , Angelo Leonelli for E.ON Italia SpA, Fausto Ferraresi (AIRU), Vincenzo Albonico for Assistal, Guerino Loi for Tholos and Roberto Aquilini for GDF Suez.

Friends of the Earth Italy document

According to the 2013 data, the energy and environmental policies targets for 2020, as set out at European and national level, are achievable and, in the energy efficiency case, already achieved and exceeded. In particular, greenhouse gas emissions have decreased by approximately 16 % compared to 1990; the renewable sources penetration in final consumption reached 14.5%; the primary energy consumption, which is used as an indicator for energy efficiency, has gone beyond the goal set out for 2020 scoring, even today, a reduction of 25 %.

Friends of the Earth Italy warn against any triumphalism because it is clear that, in Italy, the main factor in the performance of climate policies has been the economic crisis. However, there has been an improvement in energy efficiency and has had a twice impact in the renewables growth.

In fact, if we look at the reduction of greenhouse gases data, which for the four-fifths are due to the fossil fuels (coal, oil , natural gas) consumption, we see that in 2008-2012 period, the 46.3% of the reduction is mainly attributable to the cyclical effects ( decrease in demand for goods and services) and structural ( relocations and disposals ) related to the economic crisis, the 31% to energy efficiency improvement, 16.7% to the renewable energy sources growth and the 6 % from non-energy processes emissions.

To outline the 2030 goals at the European level and the resulting national policies, we must start from the analysis of these data that indicate the sectors where investments should be concentrated to get maximum results. Friends of the Earth Italy ask for a net turnaround compared to errors made over the last five years, with the extra incentives for electric renewable, which currently impact on bills for more than €. 13 billion per year, compounding the crisis effects on small and medium-sized businesses and reducing the possibility of a proper promotion of efficiency.

The real challenge of an advanced environmental policy is not to close or relocate the difficult productions but to make them environmentally sustainable, in an economic growth scenario at the households and businesses level. Measures are therefore needed not only for small and medium-sized enterprises, but also for the largest manufacturing industry. Energy efficiency has to become the fundamental and priority instrument for the greenhouse gases reduction, so that the energy consumption reduction is not a crisis and impoverishment expression, but to increase competitiveness. The energy efficiency measures should be synergic with those to stop the process of de-industrialization of our country.

In this sense, the Friends of the Earth proposal involves total review of policies to support for the energy and environment achievement:

- Immediate cessation of incentives for large wind farms and for those that only produce electricity for commercial purposes;

- Extra rents taxation of which many plants producing renewable electricity produced in the last decade are benefiting from. Many people have estimated the possible revenue from a similar measure in the order of at least one billion a year;

- Destination of this revenue to the incentives strengthening for energy efficiency promotion.

 

Friends of the Earth proposals

Friends of the Earth Italy suggest a new indicator adoption, the energy intensity, which could express the energy efficiency improvement apart from the crisis effects. The new goal for Italy 2020, to be included in the new Action Plan for Energy Efficiency Italy ( PAEE 2014 ), should be to reduce energy intensity by 10% compared to 2010 and 20 % in 2030. The achieving of this objective must be linked to macro sectoral targets ( and specific sectoral indicators ) to improve energy efficiency in the major energy end-use sectors: industry, services, agriculture, transport and residential.

Friends of the Earth Italy also formulate specific proposals:

- In the residential sector, is given to the buildings built before 1991 rehabilitation, (that municipalities enact building codes that promote this type of interventions), that to make permanent the tax deduction of 55% for energy savings, at least until 2030, allocating the deduction in a lowest annual installments number in the current ten years;

- In the transport sector, is given to the research and technological innovation,  incentiving the shift from road to rail and shipping, investing in urban and suburban public transport, now almost completely abandoned;

- In industry, to use incentive regimes that meet the State aid criteria for environmental protection, as required by European standards, giving priority to interventions that ensure energy and environmental requirements in excess of those required by law, binding , also, the discount to " energy-hungry " companies for energy efficiency investements;

- On tariff level, to overcome the progressive structure of the electricity tariff which strongly penalizes the efficient use of the electric vector and, in the case of heat pumps, the use of the same renewable sources such as hot and cold content in the air, water and soil.

- Consolidating the white certificates mechanism that, according to the provisions of Article 7 of the draft decree transposing the European Directive, shall contribute to achieving the 60% national target of energy savings.

- Maintain the role and resources to support the development of heating district by the Guarantee Fund.

Finally, Friends of the Earth Italy claim that is activated in a timely a consultation on the content of the new National Plan of Action for Energy Efficiency ( PAEE ) so that they are fully shared the measures for boosting competitiveness of the industry based on a new investments cycle in energy efficiency improving and in environmental quality.

"Proposals for new energy efficiency policies"

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