Italy

Despite lacking raw materials, Italy managed to become the fifth most industrialized economy in the world by the 1980s. However, the so-called “economic miracle” of the 1960s faded in recent years, and the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the current one have proved to be a very difficult time for this country. The last world recession and the Eurozone crisis reduced Italy’s real GDP per capita, which was, in 2018, 7.4% below the peak recorded in 2007. Nonetheless, according to GDP in current prices, Italy is still the eighth largest economy in the world and the third one in the Euro area. At the same time, this nation is also facing one of the most compelling challenges worldwide, that is decarbonizing its economy without reducing standards of living. Italy signed the Paris Agreement on 150climate change and committed to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to limit the global average temperature increase. This is a daunting task since the national energy sector historically relies on fossil fuels, mostly gas and oil, which are among the biggest contributors to climate change. Furthermore, orographic features limit the use of alternative sources that are either already fully exploited, such as hydropower and geothermal, or are difficult to develop since there are few suitable areas for wind generation. Nonetheless, it is quite unknown that Italy is one of the world’s renewable energy and energy efficiency champions. Actually, it is the second largest producer of renewable energy in Europe and its energy intensity is about 18% lower than the EU-28 average [1]. At the same time, the total GHGs 1 in CO2 equivalent, excluding land use, land-use change, and forestry (LULUCF), decreased by 17.5% between 1990 and 2016 [2]. Therefore, it is interesting to check whether such a result is due to virtuous national energy policies or to adverse economic shocks such as the Euro crisis.