Energy in Italy

Thermoelectric plant in Civitavecchia, Lazio

Energy in Italy comes mostly from fossil fuels. Among the most used resources are petroleum (mostly used for the transport sector), natural gas (used for electric energy production and heating), coal and renewables. Italy has few energy resources, and most supplies are imported.[1]

An important share of its electricity is imported, mainly from Switzerland and France. The share of primary energy dedicated to electricity production is above 35%,[2] and has grown steadily since the 1970s.

Electricity is produced mainly from natural gas, which accounts for the source of more than half of the total final electric energy produced. Another important source is hydroelectric power, which was practically the only source of electricity until 1960. Wind and solar power grew rapidly between 2010 and 2013 thanks to high incentives. Italy is one of the world's largest producers of renewable energy.[3]

  1. ^ "IEA Key energy statistics 2010" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 October 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
  2. ^ data from Terna - Italian electric grid
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference legambiente2015 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).