Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan.

The Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan is a national cross sectoral plan of Italy with the main main objective to contribute to a wide-ranging transformation of the economy. In order to develop an economy that is more respectful of people and the environment, the Plan sets out measures aimed at combining decarbonisation, the circular economy, efficiency and the rational and fair use of natural resources.
With the goal of integrating the national energy markets in the EU Single Market, with due consideration for affordable pricing and security of supply, Italy agrees with the approach proposed by the EU Governance Regulation, which opts for an organic and synergic strategy for the five dimensions of energy.
The general objectives sought by Italy are essentially the following: a) Accelerate the decarbonisation process and integrating environmental factors in other public policies. b) Place a central emphasis on citizens and businesses (in particular SMEs), in such a way that they become key players and beneficiaries of the energy transition trough the promotion of self-consumption and renewable energy communities, but also the greatest possible degree of regulation and transparency of the sales segment, so that consumers may reap the benefits of a competitive market. c) Foster the evolution of the energy system to a distribution predominantly reliant on renewable sources. d) Adopt measures to improve the integration of and the capacity of renewables to contribute to security. e) Continue to ensure security and continuity of supply from conventional sources, with the understanding that the demand for these is in progressive decline as a result of both the increase in renewables and energy efficiency. f) Promote energy efficiency across all sectors as an instrument for protecting the environment, improving energy security and reducing energy costs for families and businesses. g) Promote electrification of consumption, in particular in the civil and transport sectors, as an instrument for additionally improving air and environmental quality. h) Guide the evolution of the energy system through research and innovation activities to develop solutions able to achieve sustainability, security, continuity and cost effectiveness of supply, based increasingly on renewable energy in all usage sectors. i) Adopt measures to reduce the potential negative impacts of energy transition on other equally relevant objectives, such as the quality of air and bodies of water, the limitation of soil consumption and landscape protection. j) Continue the process for integrating the national energy system with the Energy Union.
The pursuit of these general objectives requires the adoption of horizontal policies and measures to supplement the sector-specific measures (decarbonisation, energy efficiency, energy security, internal energy market, research, innovation and competitiveness) which, in turn, must be coordinated and structured so as to be coherent with not just the specific objectives, but also the general objectives outlined above. The horizontal measures will include the following: - Careful governance of the plan that will enable it to be implemented in a coordinated manner and which ensures the uniformity of action, the coordination of research and innovation activities, and, more generally, the monitoring of the effects of the plan in terms of the reorientation of the production system, and of and costs and benefits. - An evaluation of the actions needed to effectively streamline the procedures for implementing the measures within the timeframes identified, the stability of the legislative and regulatory framework, the periodical update the processes established as a result of technological developments and the monitoring of the costs and benefits of each measure, will help to ensure that steady progress is made towards achieving the objectives. - Updating – and, if necessary, revising – the tasks of the various public bodies working on energy and environmental matters to ensure that their roles and activities are coordinated and coherent with the objectives of the plan and, more generally, the objectives of full decarbonisation by 2050. - Promoting research activities on methods for enhancing the integration of the systems (electricity, gas, water), by exploring, for example, the possibility of using pre-existing infrastructure to store renewable energy, with solutions that are effective in terms of economic and environmental costs/benefits. - Integrating new technologies into the energy system in order to facilitate distributed generation, security, resilience, energy efficiency, and the active participation of consumers in energy markets. - A willingness to consider additional instruments such as, for example, a review of energy taxation, diversified on the basis of polluting and climate-changing emissions, and in any case in line with the Community approach to this issue - The possibility of using the flexible mechanisms provided for in European sectoral legislation.
In light of the cross-cutting nature of the plan, which affects the tasks and remits of many State administrations, and the system of competences established by the Italian Constitution, this governance will encompass various ministries. It will also involve, in accordance with their respective roles, the Regions, the municipalities and the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and Environment (ARERA), with the possibility of including representatives from the research sector and business associations and workers’ organisations. An important prerequisite for effective and efficient governance of the plan is ensuring that the objectives are widely shared and agreed upon and that the policies and measures are implemented and managed in a coordinated manner.