The European Commission has approved a €23 billion ($37.7 billion) Italian State aid scheme to support electricity production from renewable energy sources.
Under the scheme, Italy will receive support for the construction of installations that generate electricity using onshore wind, solar power, hydropower, and sewage gas. The plants are expected to add 37.15 gigawatts of renewable electricity capacity, representing around 48% of current renewable energy source capacity in Italy.
The scheme will contribute to Italy’s decarbonisation objective of reaching 39.4% of gross final electricity consumption from renewable energy sources by 2030. It will also reduce electricity prices and reduce the union’s dependency on energy imports.
Italian authorities will organise a separate competitive procedure for solar and wind technologies with capacity over 1 megawatt (MW), where applicants will have to respect additional pre-selection Net Zero Industry Act criteria.
Plants with capacity lower than 1 MW can benefit from the scheme directly, without participating in a bidding process.
When in Rome
This news comes after Zenith Energy (LSE:ZEN) proposed to acquire an additional 5 megawatt-peak (MWp) ground-mounted photovoltaic development project in Rome.
The project brings Zenith’s total solar development pipeline to 188.5 MWp, representing 94% of the company’s 200 MWp target for this year.
As of April 2026, Italy’s electricity demand continued on an upward trend, reaching 23.9 billion kilowatts per hour (kWh). This figure represents a 1.9% increase compared to the same period last year.
Photovoltaic generation has become Italy’s largest renewable electricity source, with solar production exceeding 5 billion kWh — a 23.7% increase compared to April 2025.
At the beginning of this year, the nation expanded its installed capacity by 2,161 megawatts. Terna reports solar energy contributed an additional 1,029 gigawatts per hour (GWh) compared to 2025 levels, including 747 GWh linked directly to new installations and 282 GWh associated with improved solar irradiation conditions.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Unsplash
