Italy continues to make progress in its energy transition, closing November with a total of 1.2 GW of renewable energy projects in various stages of environmental processing.

While 159.6 MW received a negative evaluation in their environmental impact processing, these include the wind farm promoted by Ecopower Srl (43.6 MW), the photovoltaic system of 96.1 MW by DIOMEDE SRL, the agrivoltaic installation of 19.9 MW by Ambra Solare 28 S.r.l., and another agrivoltaic project by INE MONTEMILONE S.r.l., which does not have a defined capacity.

According to an analysis conducted by Energía Estratégica España based on data from the Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica (MASE), agrovoltaic, wind, and photovoltaic projects have been processed, reflecting a diversification in the technologies under development. Additionally, some plants integrate storage.

Wind technology, with 596.6 MW, leads in capacity, while agrivoltaics, with 528.8 MW, remains key due to its combination of energy and agricultural use.

Wind Leads Installed Capacity

In terms of installed capacity, wind energy was the predominant technology, with 553 MW advancing in environmental processing. Projects such as the Macchitelli Wind Farm (72 MW) by GRV WIND NISSA S.r.l. and the repowering of the “Sant’Agata Wind Park” by Fri-El S. Agata stand out in this category.

Moreover, several developments integrate storage systems, such as the 31 MW park with 8 MW of storage by Vento Solare S.r.l., reflecting a trend toward technological hybridization.

Meanwhile, agrivoltaics continues to establish itself as a strategic technology. In total, 508.9 MW of agrivoltaics were processed, with the 106.4 MW project by R.POWER ITALY SOL S.r.l. being the largest of its kind. This reflects the appeal of this technology for combining renewable generation with agricultural activities.

Photovoltaics advanced in November with 176.6 MW in environmental processing from four projects, while 96 MW were rejected.

Company Participation

GRV and R.POWER ITALY SOL S.r.l. led the business activity with 162 MW and 106.4 MW respectively, contributing projects in agrivoltaics and wind energy.

Meanwhile, Solaria and DUDAIM PROPCO S.R.L. also made their mark with large-scale developments of 82.2 MW and 75.7 MW, respectively. Additionally, notable developers like Iberdrola and Naturgy stand out.

Processing Statuses

An analysis of the processing statuses reveals a mixed picture. Of the total projects, 47% are in the initial “Verifica amministrativa” stage of administrative review.

29% faced environmental impact assessments, with several cases receiving negative opinions. 24% of the plants have made significant progress in the environmental processing process, as they are in the “Provvedimento Unico in materia Ambientale” phase.

The percentage of negative opinions at the environmental impact stage underscores the regulatory challenges developers face, especially for agrivoltaic projects.

It should be noted that grid saturation remains a structural challenge in Italy, with over 300 GW of pending connection requests. According to the operator Terna, urgent reforms in transmission infrastructure are required to avoid bottlenecks that hinder the development of new renewable projects.

List of Projects Advancing in Environmental Processing in November