Italy’s Council of Ministers has approved for final consideration a bill delegating to the government the task of reintroducing sustainable nuclear energy into the Italian mix. The measure, proposed by President Giorgia Meloni and Minister of Environment & Energy Security Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, gives the government 12 months to adopt the necessary implementing legislative decrees.
These will have to regulate the entire sector, providing for:
- The development of a national programme for sustainable nuclear power;
- The establishment of an independent authority for nuclear safety;
- The strengthening of scientific and industrial nuclear research;
- The training of new skills; and
- The conduct of awareness-raising and information campaigns.
The bill also specified the involvement of municipalities in consultations for the identification of the areas suitable to host new nuclear plants, with adequate territorial compensation measures.
The focus is to be on small and advance modular reactor technology (SMRs and AMRs) as well as fusion. Welcoming the approval of the draft law, Pichetto said: “With this measure, Italy equips itself with a fundamental tool to look to the future with realism and ambition. We want to be leaders in new technologies, from SMRs and AMRs to fusion, within the framework of technological neutrality and the European energy transition. Sustainable nuclear power is a choice based on innovation, safety, and responsibility toward citizens, businesses, and the environment.”
However, before the government can move to implement the bill, it must first become law. It will need to be approved by the relevant parliamentary committees, followed by discussion in the chamber including any amendments and finally the same text must be accepted by both houses, the House and the Senate. Only then can the government begin to legislate.
Italy was a leading nuclear power-producing country in the 1960s but chose to phase out all nuclear plants after a 1987 referendum following the Chornobyl disaster. It closed its last two operating plants, Caorso and Trino Vercellese, in 1990. The fourth Berlusconi government attempted to launch a new nuclear power programme but that was also rejected by a referendum in 2011, shortly after the Fukushima accident.
In May 2023, the Italian Parliament approved a motion urging the government to consider incorporating nuclear power into the country’s energy mix. The following September, the first meeting was held of the National Platform for Sustainable Nuclear Power, set up by the government to define a time frame for the possible resumption of nuclear energy and identify opportunities for the industrial chain already operating in the sector.
In March, the government approved a proposal to draft laws to permit nuclear power generation, focusing on SMRs. The government aims to finalise plans and legislation by the end of 2027, in order to supplement renewable energy sources.
Italy’s National Integrated Plan for Energy & Climate already includes scenarios in which nuclear power provides between 11% and 22% of Italy’s electricity by 2050. The government plans to allocate €20m ($20.7m) a year from 2027 to 2029 for nuclear investments.
