INTERVIEW - Italy green power output set to climb - Enel
Date: 17-May-02
Country: ITALY
Author: Margaret Orgill
"We'll see more investment in wind, geothermal and then some hydro," Paolo Pietrogrande, chief executive officer of Enel Greenpower told Reuters on the sidelines of a power finance conference.
Unlike countries in northern Europe which are building wind farms offshore due to planning problems, Pietrogrande said Italian sites will be onshore because the tourist industry would object to towering turbines just off the coast.
Also, the seabed slopes steeply around Italy making it difficult to build offshore sites, he added.
Italy generates about 14 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity from green sources, excluding large hydropower schemes, which is nearly six percent of total power production. This is likely to rise to around 25 TWh by 2006.
State-controlled Enel's production is around eight TWh and will grow to 12-13 TWh by 2006/2007, said Pietrogrande.
Planning is also a problem for Italy's wind power sector with projects having to wait years to get approval.
"Enel has projects in the United States and there it takes about nine months to get a permit and start building. In Italy, it takes between three and four years," he said.
"Italy has passed approval power from central to local government so it takes time to make decisions."
The government, worried about a looming power shortage, recently passed a decree speeding up power plant authorisation so that most schemes get the go-ahead within six months.
According to Italy's grid, companies have made proposals for 538 renewable energy schemes with a total capacity of 18,900 megawatts.
Electricity generators must by law supply two percent of their power from green sources this year.
