We'll need more energy than expected. The Petroleum Union has revised upwards the data on the Italian invoice for 2011, which rose to 63 billion euros from the 60,4 indicated at the beginning of the year. This was stated by Pasquale De Vita, president of the oil companies' association, speaking at the organisation's assembly. “In 2011 the energy bill, with prices around current values – specified De Vita – could exceed 63 billion euro”.
For the current year, the oil bill alone, with prices around current values, "could reach around 36 billion euros", a value included in the range indicated in February, which ranged from 31,3 to 37,4 billion, but growing compared to the association's initial estimates, which were 34,2 billion. The forecasts at the beginning of the year were based on a euro-dollar exchange rate of 1,35 and an average price between 90 and 100 dollars. In 2010 Italy's energy bill amounted to 53,9 billion while the oil bill alone amounted to 28,5 billion.
As for prices, De Vita then underlined that in Italy “there are already 7-8 thousand self-service systems that charge prices similar to or lower than the European average. The problem is that we have European prices but not yet a European network”. In the last three years, in the face of declining consumption, "2-3 thousand new plants have been opened by independent operators". For these reasons, according to the Up, the Government must restart the fuel sector reform process: "It would be better to abandon the easy shortcuts and start again from the proposals shared in the ministerial seat: it is an invitation to Minister Romani to accelerate on this path . As an industry we are ready to do our part but we will not accept to pay the price for wrong choices alone. We cannot stand still with falling consumption and growing plants”.
