Geothermal power Geothermal power is electricity generation, electrical power generated from geothermal energy. Technologies in use include dry steam power stations, flash steam power stations and binary cycle power stations. Geothermal electricity generation i ...

accounts for about 1.6-1.8% of the total electric energy production in Italy and is about 7% of the total renewable energy produced in 2010. The total energy from Geothermal was 5,660 GWh in 2015. Italy is the seventh country by geothermal installed capacity. Italy was the first country in the world to exploit geothermal energy to produce electricity. The high geothermal gradient that forms part of the peninsula makes potentially exploitable also other provinces: research carried out in the 1960s and 1970s identifies potential geothermal fields in

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

and

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, as well as in most volcanic islands. There are 33 active geothermal plants with a total capacity of 772 MW. All the plants are in Tuscany in the provinces of

Grosseto Grosseto () is a city and a ''comune'' in the central Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of the province of Grosseto and the main city of the Maremma region. The city lies from the Tyrrhenian Sea, at the centre of an alluvial plain on the ...

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

and

Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...

. The province of Pisa alone contributes for more than half of the national production. The 2023

International Energy Agency The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis and data on the global energy sector. The 31 member countries and 13 associatio ...

(IEA) report on Italy's

energy policy Energy policies are the government's strategies and decisions regarding the Energy production, production, Energy distribution, distribution, and World energy supply and consumption, consumption of energy within a specific jurisdiction. Energy ...

highlights its progress in geothermal energy within the context of achieving

carbon neutrality Global net-zero emissions is reached when greenhouse gas emissions and removals due to human activities are in balance. It is often called simply net zero. ''Emissions'' can refer to all greenhouse gases or only carbon dioxide (). Reaching net ze ...

by 2050. This aligns with the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

's ' Fit-for-55' package and the REPowerEU plan, which influence Italy's strategies for

sustainable energy Energy system, Energy is sustainability, sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." Definitions of sustainable energy usually look at its effects on the e ...

. The report also draws attention to Italy's efforts to diversify

energy sources Energy development is the field of activities focused on obtaining sources of energy from Natural resource, natural resources. These activities include the production of Renewable energy, renewable, nuclear power, nuclear, and fossil fuel derive ...

, enhance efficiency, and reduce reliance on Russian

natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...

imports, enhancing energy security.

History

In the 20th century, demand for electricity led to the consideration of geothermal power as a generating source. Prince Piero Ginori Conti tested the first geothermal power generator on 4 July 1904 in

Larderello Larderello is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Pomarance, in Tuscany in central Italy, renowned for its geothermal productivity. Geography The region of Larderello has experienced occasional phreatic eruptions, caused by explosive outburst ...

, in the province of Pisa. It successfully lit four light bulbs. Later, in 1911, the world's first commercial geothermal power plant was built there. Experimental generators were built in other countries in the 1920s, but Italy was the world's only industrial producer of geothermal electricity until 1958.

Current development

On 30 May 2012,

Enel Green Power Enel Green Power S.p.A. is an Italian multinational renewable energy corporation, headquartered in Rome. The company was formed as a subsidiary of the power generation firm Enel in December 2008. It has operations in five continents generating ...

announced the entry into service of the completely new geothermal power station ''Rancia 2'' in the town of

Radicondoli Radicondoli is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence and about southwest of Siena. Main sights Churches in Radicondoli include the ''Collegiata dei Santi Simon ...

, in the

province of Siena The province of Siena (, ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. It has 259,826 inhabitants. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chian ...

. The plant, which has a net installed capacity of 17 MW, will be able to generate about 150 GWh per year. The remaking of the central Rancia 2 falls within the group business plan 2012-2016, which envisages an investment package of around 500 million euros for development of geothermal plants in Tuscany. While the update of ''Rancia 1'' and ''Le Prata'' (in the towns of

( SI) and

Castelnuovo di Val di Cecina Castelnuovo di Val di Cecina is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence and about 70 km southeast of Pisa. Castelnuovo di Val di Cecina borders the following muni ...

( PI) respectively) are in progress, the total renovation will also start soon for the three geothermal plants located in the town of

Piancastagnaio Piancastagnaio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena. It is located on the Monte Amiata slopes. The main attractions include the ...

(SI). In 2013, Enel Green Power installed Gruppo Binario Bagnore3–1 MW. It was the first

binary cycle A binary cycle is a method for generating electrical power from geothermal resources and employs two separate fluid cycles, hence binary cycle. The primary cycle extracts the geothermal energy from the reservoir, and secondary cycle converts the h ...

power plant in Italy.

History

Current development

See also

References

Further reading