Using only clean energy to fuel consumption throughout Sardinia, a project that could be exported all over the world and among the seven that have been approved globally among the United Nations Multi-Stakeholders Energy Compact.
The "Green electrification of Sardinia" project, promoted by Enel and Roma Tre University, aims at the decarbonisation of the island and alongside the "development of renewable energy which contributes to the energy transition and the spread of the electrification of consumption, today includes economic convenience for Sardinians ", explained Enel Italy director Nicola Lanzetta during the presentation of the initiative in which, among others, the mayor of Cagliari Paolo Truzzu also took part.
Lanzetta argued that Sardinia can become "best in class, like the Balearics and Hawaii that have already undertaken this transition", stating that the project is "a very applicable solution" because on the island "there are sun and wind, it does not cost, it is an opportunity for Sardinians, with benefits for consumers, local entrepreneurs and labor, there is no single reason to say that it will not be a success "and" 80% of the Sardinians whose opinion we have heard are convinced that this is the right direction ".
A result, he added, "that we can achieve by building a strategic alliance between public, private, academia, associations and citizens".
The Mediterranean area "is a climate change hotspot - explained Nigel Tapper, lead author of the IPCC - and this project is a unique opportunity for Sardinia to be an example for the world of how to reduce emissions to face change climate ", while improving" the quality of life while respecting the territory ".
The mayor of Cagliari indicated that the "winning strategy is to have a very pragmatic approach to offer fellow citizens a better quality of life" and the administration is committed, among other things, to "developing a more sustainable local public transport, also with green buses by 2030, and to make better use of the resources we have for the energy efficiency of public buildings and in sharing and transferring energy to the community ".
THE PROJECT - "Green electrification of Sardinia", explains Enel, plans to achieve a series of objectives by 2030, in particular "the overcoming of energy production from fossil sources by replacing it with renewable plants, mainly photovoltaic and wind power, and at the same time the diffusion of technologies for the electrification of end uses such as electric mobility, systems for space heating and cooling, energy efficiency and induction plates. The low population density of the island (about 68 inhabitants per square kilometer) will also allow widespread use of distributed generation ".
The company notes that "given the marginal penetration of methane and the local importance of services such as trade, tourism, agriculture and public administration, which make up 60% of the added value, Sardinia offers a unique context for electrification" also because " Most of the electricity is produced using coal and residues from oil refining processes. In addition, Sardinia boasts a per capita consumption of electricity in the domestic sector of Italy, equal to approximately 1.38. MWh per year, with self-production which, however, still represents less than 1% of the total and is almost exclusively from fossil sources ".
"The green electrification project of Sardinia in the next ten years has been included by the experts of the High Level Dialogue on Energy of the United Nations (of which I am honored to be part of) among the 'multistakeholder energy compact'", explained Valeria Termini, Professor of Political Economy at the Roma Tre University. "We have chosen and proposed it as an example of local growth to promote access to clean energy (goal 7 of sustainable development). It is an opportunity for Sardinia and Italy to contribute to the global goal of decarbonization with a concrete example, which uses natural sources of energy available locally, and to offer a reference model for the independent development of the most vulnerable countries in which 759 million people without electricity still live ".
(Unioneonline / F)