It seems that the only way we have to learn is through disaster pedagogy. We have been talking about renewables and environmental sustainability for at least twenty years. The experience of ethical funds was born in the same period. And even before the war in Ukraine there were not many doubts that renewables were the best solution for health (fewer deaths from pollution), climate emergency and global warming (less climate-altering emissions) and also for the cost now that with the ‘massive increase in the global production of panels the cost of photovoltaic energy is by far the lowest compared to that of fossil fuels and nuclear power (we are now well beyond the so-called grid parity).
Yet Italy, despite the European Union’s appeal to reach zero emissions by 2050 and reduce them by 55 percent by 2030, was and is still at 16 percent of energy produced from renewables, to which is added a 17 percent from hydroelectricity. The rest are fossil sources. Today there are countries far ahead of us such as Norway, certainly no longer sunny, where renewables are over 60 percent. Putin
‘s warmakes us suddenly realize that there are two other important criteria for which renewables are cheaper. The first is the volatility of prices (unfortunately all Italian families and businesses know what we are talking about these days with the expensive bill) which has brought inflation to 7 percent when without the increase in the price of energy the same would be to a physiological 2 percent. The second is precisely that of peace and energy independence. For a country that could well be called the Saudi Arabia of wind and sun, it makes no sense to depend for energy flows from dictatorships or autocracies like Russia, which finances with gas profits when it is above 43 euros per megawatts now (we have reached 120) their wars.
It is logical that one thinks of a total embargo on Russian oil and gas. It is possible
Not immediately if not at the cost of enormous sacrifices. However, it could have been something already acquired if we had made better use of our comparative advantage by arriving at least halfway between our current results and those of Norway.
Within 1-2 years, however, the goal that should be credibly announced now can be reached (as Japan has done in recent days). How do we get there
Certainly not by reopening coal-fired plants because it would be a drug with serious side effects given that coal ranks last in terms of pollution and emissions. We must do this first of all by unblocking and accelerating the authorizations of the many projects deposited locally which, if started, would give us a total of energy equal to almost 150 percent of Russian gas.
Another main road that can be implemented immediately is to put panels on all public buildings and facilitate panels in street parking lots. A convenient policy option also for our companies is that of a tax credit to put photovoltaic systems on roofs and warehouses. Those who did it before the war today produce themselves the energy they need and enjoy a competitive advantage unlike companies that risk closing due to the explosion in the price of gas. The government has already launched a good measure of this kind in recent days with a tax credit of 30 per cent but only for interventions in the six regions of the South. The measure should be extended to the whole country with a tax credit of 50 per cent. one hundred.
Before the crisis there was talk of carbon tax to promote the ecological transition. The “Putin carbon tax”, the tragedy of the war with its effects on gas and oil and the equivalent of 10 carbon tax. Possible that we always need a catastrophe to open our eyes and do what even before it was convenient for us to do
