Renewables in Italy: what they are and how they affect production

Renewable energy in Italy met 33.6 percent of national electricity demand during the first five months of the year, which totaled 125,079 Gwh. This is recorded in Terna’s May 2023 Monthly Report. During the same period, non-renewable energy sources in Italy generated 48.1 percent of national electricity demand, while the remaining 18.3 percent was covered by the foreign balance.

The main renewable energy sources in Italy by installed capacity are in order: photovoltaic, hydroelectric, wind, geothermal and bioenergy. Data from Terna’s Gaudi (Gestione Anagrafica Unica degli Impianti e delle Unità di Produzione) portal show the following increases in cumulative installed capacity for each type of renewable energy in Italy over the past decade:
– Photovoltaics: from 18 GW in 2013 to 26 GW in 2023 (updated to first quarter)
Regions with more than 2.5 GW: Lombardy, Apulia, Emilia Romagna, Veneto
– Hydroelectric: virtually unchanged capacity just over 20 GW over the past decade
Regions with more than 2.5 GW: Lombardy, Piedmont, Trentino Alto Adige
– Wind: from 8.5 GW in 2013 to 12 GW in 2023
Regions with more than 2.5 GW: Apulia
– Geothermal and Bioenergy: from about 4 GW in 2013 to about 5 GW in 2023
Regions with more than 1 GW: Tuscany

On an annual trend basis, production from renewable energy sources in Italy increased by 12.7 percent in May 2023 compared to May 2022, according to Terna data. In particular, there was a significant increase in May 2023 compared to the same month in 2022 in both wind (+33.8%) and hydro production (+33.4%), which had suffered a sharp decline last year due to prolonged weather conditions of drought that had challenged mountain reservoirs and reduced windiness in the Mediterranean area. On the other hand, energy generation from photovoltaic plants decreased in May 2023 compared to May 2022 (-5.4%).