To save on gas you can also drill holes underground and look for new energy. Clearly, not just anyone can do it, but only authorized companies that manage services. In Verona the multi-utility Agsm Aim did it by announcing a geothermal project for district heating. It is the first Italian city to convert the plants into transition era energy.
Customers connected to the network will receive services from a source of which, it is said, the Verona area is rich. When they announced it in the Municipality it was explained that in the space of a few years we will save more than 40% of the gas consumed today, also reducing CO2 emissions by approximately 30 thousand tons. Heavy numbers for a medium-sized city like Verona, where Agsm Aim has decided to contain costs for the citizens and businesses served.
Good examples of geothermal exploitation are found above all in Tuscany. But in Veneto we look forward by borrowing, if we want, consolidated experiences although not sufficiently protected by the measures governments. The battle for the recognition of strategic function geothermal energy is always in the foreground with the search for greater space towards public funding.
Gas prices will also be marked by important changes in 2024. It is clear that what Verona intends to push for is the availability of alternative sources to old fuels. The Geothermal Project took shape a few weeks ago, is in the industrial plan of the publicly-owned company and will lead to the establishment of a new company that will take care of the creation of geothermal energy.
The main objective is savings
“Investing in geothermal energy means recovering heat through a source that provides renewable energy with zero emissions. A project that the Municipality strongly supports and which demonstrates how the energy transition can bring advantages thanks to price stabilization" explained the Environment Councilor, Thomas Ferrari. The works will concern new wells near the five cogeneration plants in Verona and in the future also for the district heating plants in Vicenza.
Smaller quantities of gas will be injected into the plants, the costs of which will have to translate into final savings for the people of Verona. The wholehot water that will be taken will be fed into the network with the technologies present on the market. As for environmental impacts, Verona aspires to a record: 31 thousand tonnes of CO2 less per year is equivalent to 2.300 hectares of forest to be created.
The story is a warning for local and national energy planning. How much untapped heat is there under our feet? It must be said that research and concessions for the exploitation of the resource are also contested by environmentalist groups in some areas of the country, but the energy strength and the opportunity to create new extraction fields is useful for diversifying our needs. Verona proves that it has done so.
