Geothermal energy in Italy is mainly used for
electric power production.
Italy is located above a relatively thin crust, with four large areas of underground heat:
* the first is
Tuscany
Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze'').
Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...
, with the
Larderello
Larderello is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Pomarance, in Tuscany in central Italy, renowned for its geothermal productivity.
Geography
The region of Lardarello has experienced occasional phreatic eruptions, caused by explosive outbursts ...
fields.
* the second is in
Campania
Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...
, the
Phlegraean Fields
The Phlegraean Fields ( it, Campi Flegrei ; nap, Campe Flegree, from Ancient Greek 'to burn') is a large region of supervolcanic calderas situated to the west of Naples, Italy. It was declared a regional park in 2003. The area of the calde ...
* the third, very large and not fully explored, in the south of the
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...
* the fourth is the
Strait of Sicily
The Strait of Sicily (also known as Sicilian Strait, Sicilian Channel, Channel of Sicily, Sicilian Narrows and Pantelleria Channel; it, Canale di Sicilia or the Stretto di Sicilia; scn, Canali di Sicilia or Strittu di Sicilia, ar, مضيق ص ...
, around the undersea
Empedocles volcano and
Lampedusa Island
Lampedusa ( , , ; scn, Lampidusa ; grc, Λοπαδοῦσσα and Λοπαδοῦσα and Λοπαδυῦσσα, Lopadoûssa; mt, Lampeduża) is the largest island of the Italian Pelagie Islands in the Mediterranean Sea.
The ''comune'' of L ...
A 2018 report by the Italian Geothermal Union indicated that Italy has additional geothermal energy potential which has yet to be utilized.
Exploration
Research into the potential for geothermal energy started in 1977, following the
oil crisis, with work of
ENEL
Enel S.p.A. is an Italian Multinational corporation, multinational manufacturer and distributor of electricity and gas. Enel, which originally stood for Ente nazionale per l'energia elettrica (National Electricity Board), was first established ...
and
ENI, which started jointly to bore hundreds of wells in Italy, creating a complete map of the underground resource. But in the '90s, the exploratory activity stopped.
Following results a mapping of Italy in four areas:
* very high potential, with water of more than temperature at less than 3 km depth; area extends from NW-SE of
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
to the
Aeolian Islands
The Aeolian Islands ( ; it, Isole Eolie ; scn, Ìsuli Eoli), sometimes referred to as the Lipari Islands or Lipari group ( , ) after their largest island, are a volcanic archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea north of Sicily, said to be named after ...
.
* water temperature between and at less than 3 km depth.
* water temperature between and at less than 3 km depth.
* low potential, no commercial utilization at less than 3 km depth.
Electric power production
Thermal applications
Italy uses its lower temperature fluids for
spa
A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...
s, agriculture, industry and
district heating
District heating (also known as heat networks or teleheating) is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location through a system of insulated pipes for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating a ...
.
A large portion of house heating is concentrated in the
Abano spa area, in northeast Italy. As district heating the most important plants are in
Ferrara
Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...
and
Vicenza
Vicenza ( , ; ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region at the northern base of the ''Monte Berico'', where it straddles the Bacchiglione River. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and east of Milan.
Vicenza is a th ...
in the eastern
Po Valley
The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...
, about 1990. Smaller district heating plants are found in
Bagno di Romagna
Bagno di Romagna ( Bagnese: ; rgn, Bagn d'Rumàgna) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Forlì-Cesena in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about southeast of Bologna and about south of Forlì.
Bagno di Romagna borders the ...
and
Acqui Terme
Acqui Terme (; pms, Àich ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont, northern Italy. It is about south-southwest of Alessandria. It is one of the principal winemaking communes of the Italian DOCG wine Brachetto d'A ...
.
See also
*
Geothermal power in Italy
Geothermal power accounts for about 1.6-1.8% of the total electric energy production in Italy and is about 7% of the total renewable energy produced in 2010.
The total energy from Geothermal was 5,660 GWh in 2015. Italy is the seventh country ...
*
Hydrothermal vent
A hydrothermal vent is a fissure on the seabed from which geothermally heated water discharges. They are commonly found near volcanically active places, areas where tectonic plates are moving apart at mid-ocean ridges, ocean basins, and hotspot ...
*
Earth's internal heat budget
Earth's internal heat budget is fundamental to the thermal history of the Earth. The flow of heat from Earth's interior to the surface is estimated at 47±2 terawatts (TW)Davies, J. H., & Davies, D. R. (2010). Earth's surface heat flux. Solid ...
References
External links
Italy Think GeoEnergy
Geothermal in Italy World Energy Council
{{Europe topic , Geothermal energy in
Sustainable energy
Volcanism