Italy needs an ‘energy disarmament’

The Senate has approved the enabling act on nuclear power, and the political manoeuvring has begun immediately: the government claims it is “an important step for the country” (as Environment Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin stated); the opposition complains that it is merely “nuclear hot air” (as Annalisa Corrado, the PD’s environment spokesperson, said). In reality, Italy needs bilateral disarmament and a serious rethink on energy. Continuing to be divided on issues where long-term strategies need to be developed only plays into the hands of speculators. So, whilst the government is right to claim credit for the result achieved, it should have the honesty to acknowledge that we have lost at least three years: it was 9 May 2023 when the Chamber of Deputies approved a motion, first tabled by Luca Squeri (Forza Italia’s energy spokesperson), which gave a strong impetus in this direction. Instead of seizing the moment, the government took its time, and now officials at the Ministry of the Environment will have to rush to draft the delegated decrees – assuming, and this is by no means certain, that there is any way of getting them approved before the end of the parliamentary term.

If the dossier had received the attention it deserves, we would be implementing it today and everything would be on a much firmer footing. But even the PD is playing the ‘it’s someone else’s fault’ game: if it has ‘no ideological prejudice against nuclear power’, as Elly Schlein told Il Foglio on 23 July, why hasn’t it sought to mediate with the government? Using renewables (which we do need) to oppose nuclear power is a move of little substance, identical and symmetrical to the opposite approach: Italy needs both renewables, which can be installed quickly, and nuclear power, which takes longer but can guarantee a continuous supply of decarbonised electricity. The paradox is that, when asked about energy, everyone points to Spain as a model: each person sees only what suits their own interests. Instead, we should look at the bigger picture, which is not about renewables or nuclear power, but about renewables and nuclear power. Please take note.