Three distinctive macroscopic trends emerged from the processing of economic data in the electricity sector for 2013 and proposed in the new Assoelettrica newsletter. The effort to overcome the fragmentation of information has engaged the association's research office in recomposing in a single analysis, figures and trends taken from the elaborations of Terna, Eurostat, GME, Snam Rete Gas and MiSE. Which allows us to understand where the turning points, problems and elements of crisis are. Let's see in detail.
1) Please don't call them Negawatt. The decline in electricity consumption continues for the third consecutive year, appearing decidedly correlated to the economic crisis rather than to increases in efficiency in end uses. On the consumption front, 10,367 GWh are missing, while production has fallen by about the same amount (-10.426GWh). The economic recession affects all countries, but in Italy the contraction of electricity production is more marked than in the rest of Europe. The drop in electricity consumption takes on further significance if analyzed in the light of the decrease in the electricity penetration rate (22% compared to 22,1% in 2012).
This parameter, which testifies to both the degree of economic development and the well-being of citizens, indicates a lower use of electricity in final energy consumption. Now, this decrease, albeit slight, accentuates the gap between Italy and the rest of the industrialized countries where the penetration of the electric carrier is on average higher. In addition to the higher cost of electricity, this difference is also due to the tariff structure which, for some classes of users, discourages consumption and erects artificial barriers to the diffusion of efficient electrotechnologies, even in the residential sector.
2) Renewables continue to grow. Yes, but which ones? The breakdown of production among the various sources shows that where thermal sources have decreased (gas represents 65% of the overall decrease in fossil fuels), production from renewable sources has increased. This is due to a double rain: of H2O and of money. The abundant rainfall in 2013 allowed hydroelectric power to cover more than half of the overall increase in production from RES (+18,6TWh). Meanwhile, the charges deriving from incentive policies for renewables continue to swell, up by 1,6 billion euros compared to 2012.
3) Paradox dear bill. Final prices have not ceased to grow despite the Pun on the electricity exchange decreasing. Although electricity companies are increasingly efficient and despite the decrease in the wholesale gas price which therefore leads to a lower wholesale electricity price, the consumer does not get any benefit due to the increase in incentives paid to renewables. The gap with the rest of Europe is accentuated due to the excessive weight of system charges, which are in turn burdened by the tax authorities.
And already Europe is not doing well in comparison with global competition. The price of gas in Europe is on average three times the prices in the United States and the kilowatt hour costs 2 times as much and 20% more than in China. The expensive energy is no longer a cyclical fact but will afflict the Old Continent for the next 20 years, crippling the competitiveness of its businesses. According to the verdict from the IEA, Europe is about to lose a third of its world market share in energy-intensive exports to the United States. And so we give a further blow to the already weakened national manufacturing system which since 2008 has destroyed 15% of its production capacity.
Without demonizing climate policies, what's the point of stubbornly in complete isolation from the rest of the planet, with overly ambitious goals. Günther Oettinger, Commissioner for Energy, also understood this and a week after signing the unrealistic objective which commits Europe alone to reducing CO40 emissions by 2% by 2030, retracted and bluntly stated, "To think that with this 4,5% (share of global emissions for which Europe is responsible in 2030) the world can be saved is arrogant and stupid. We need a global commitment." Oettinger's stick must remind us that it is time to overcome perceptive distortions and recognize that the environment, energy and economic stability are inextricably intertwined in a delicate but necessary balance. Environmental diktats cannot condition an energy policy such as to favor the road to deindustrialisation.
