Gas likely to increase importance in Italian power generation

Gas is likely to increase its share in Italian power generation to 50 % over the next ten years, Italy's energy regulator told an Emart energy conference in Milan.
The Autorita per l'Energia's Oliviero Bernardini predicted that the share of power in gas utilization would go up to a similar level over the same time, power and gas combined currently occupy the key position in the Italian energy sector Bernardini said, accounting for around 75 % of final demand. "This share is likely to increase out into the future" he said.

Currently the majority of Italian generation comes from conventional oil-fired plants. 54 % of these are owned by ENEL, and another 20 % are owned by industry. But the share of gas is set to grow as oil-fired plants are replaced by new technology.