Italy’s energy policy: security and efficiency in an open market

This conference focussed on possible options for a better national energy program, able to guarantee both security and efficiency. Discussions touched on how responsibility should be divvied up between institutions, the private sector and public administrations as well as between local, regional and European governments. Participants considered Italy’s high energy costs, its supply difficulties and imbalances as regards access to and provision of energy resources. Within this overall context, participants examined the nuclear option as well as the development of clean coal and renewable sources. The conference ended with a discussion of the possibility of reaching a stable balance between costs, environmental considerations and new technologies, in an effort to offer the consumer a new "energy pact", with safe and clean advantages.