Italy’s Senate (upper house of parliament) has approved a framework enabling bill, formally reopening the door to nuclear energy nearly 40 years after a referendum voted to phase it out. The bill, sponsored by Environment & Energy Security Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, cleared the upper house in an 81–51 vote to establish the regulatory foundation for next-generation nuclear technologies.
The measure had already passed the Chamber of Deputies (lower house) completing its parliamentary passage. The legislation on “sustainable nuclear energy” does not authorise construction of reactors but gives the government the legal powers to establish a system under which nuclear generation could return to Italy.
The legislation gives the government 12 months to adopt implementing decrees covering the entire nuclear cycle, including construction and operation of plants, licensing procedures, safety requirements, used fuel and radioactive waste, decommissioning and regulatory supervision. The legislation also provides for a national programme covering advanced nuclear technologies such as small modular reactors (SMRs) and fusion rather than a return to the large conventional plants that characterised Italy’s earlier nuclear programme.
The government argues that SMRs are cheaper, safer, and faster to deploy in order to complement renewable sources. Fratin targets 2033–2034 for the first operational plants. The policy completely reverses the restrictions resulting from national referendums in 1987 (following the Chornobyl disaster) and 2011 (after Fukushima). For decades, Italy has had to import large amounts of electricity, frequently buying nuclear power generated by neighbouring countries such as France.
In a statement following the parliamentary vote, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni pointed to the contradiction of Italy importing electricity generated by nuclear power stations in neighbouring countries while being unable to produce nuclear electricity domestically.
Italy remains heavily reliant on imported fuels, leaving its economy exposed to movements in international oil and gas prices. The government is therefore presenting nuclear power not simply as a climate measure but as part of a wider strategy to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels.
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 2025, 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.
“Today Parliament gave final approval to the nuclear law. After almost 40 years, Italy once again has a regulatory framework for producing nuclear energy,” Meloni wrote on X, calling it “a courageous and common-sense choice”. She linked the return to nuclear power to energy security and growing electricity demand, including that driven by the expansion of data centres and artificial intelligence.
New nuclear technologies should provide “greater energy security, meaning less dependence on foreign countries and less exposure to international crises”, while complementing renewables with stable, low-emission power generation, she said. “We are talking about next-generation technologies, not the old nuclear power plants.”
Fratin also rejected the idea that the legislation represented a return to the nuclear model of the past, advocating instead new technologies, integrated with renewable energy, that could contribute to energy security and the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050. He highlighted the work carried out in recent years with technical experts and the expertise retained by Italian companies which, despite Italy’s withdrawal from nuclear power generation, have continued to operate internationally.
The focus will now shift to the implementing decrees. These will determine which technologies can be authorised, the procedures for selecting sites, the safety and oversight regime, radioactive waste management and, the economic model through which Italy’s potential return to nuclear power will be financed.
Another key and closely scrutinised issue concerns nuclear safety governance. The legislation provides for a reorganisation of existing bodies and allows for the possible establishment of an independent administrative authority for nuclear safety. Many of the relevant responsibilities are currently exercised by Italy’s National Inspectorate for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (ISIN – Ispettorato nazionale per la sicurezza nucleare e la radioprotezione).
Plant siting is another politically sensitive question. The legislation provides for the involvement of affected communities and measures intended to benefit host territories, while also allowing areas to put themselves forward voluntarily, alongside the relevant environmental assessment procedures.
There is also the unresolved issue of the National Repository for radioactive waste. Italy’s former nuclear power plants are still being decommissioned, while there is no site for the permanent disposal of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste, or temporary storage of high-level waste.
Italy’s main employers’ federation, Confindustria, welcomed the new legislation. According to Confindustria, nuclear energy could help strengthen Italy’s energy independence, stabilise costs and support industry’s transition towards climate neutrality. Confindustria also estimates that more than 70 Italian companies already operate in the nuclear supply chain, covering activities ranging from reactor design and component manufacturing to plant maintenance.
