Producing Italian steel with nuclear power:signed a controversial agreement

The Federation of Italian Steel Companies (Federacciai) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the French group EDF and the Italians Edison, Ansaldo Energia and Ansaldo Nucleare with the aim of making Italy «the first nation in Europe and in the world to produce steel “green” thanks to an energy mix that includes nuclear power».The signatories will evaluate the co-investment opportunities in new nuclear power and, in particular, in the creation of small modular reactors (SMR) in Italy.The agreement, although signed in a country like Italy, where the use of nuclear energy was rejected by two referendums in 1987 and 2011, appears in line with the National Energy Climate Plan (PNIEC) of our country, with which the Meloni government has announced it wants to cover with nuclear power 11% of the national energy mix by 2050.

The formal purpose ofagreement consists in making Italy a leader in sustainable steel production, or “green steel” For this reason, the production of steel with a reduced carbon footprint is expected, using “clean” energy sources.The use of nuclear energy would be justified by the fact that it is considered a low-carbon energy source:its use could therefore lead to significant reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional methods of steel production - which instead involve the use of fossil fuels -, in line with the objectives of sustainability and the fight against climate change.Although Italian citizens declared themselves against nuclear power in two specific referendums, in 1987 and 2011, in the new proposal for the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC) published and sent to Brussels by the Ministry of the Environment, which defines the policies and measures aimed at achieving the objectives to reduce climate-altering emissions, made mandatory by European regulations, a nuclear scenario is also envisaged.The explicit intent of the executive is in fact to develop up to 8GW by 2050 to cover 11% of the national demand, with a possible projection towards 22%.They are against the government's proposal signed a very harsh statement from Greenpeace Italia, Kyoto Club, Legambiente, Transport&Environmen and WWF Italia, which highlighted how the inclusion of nuclear power in the Pniec is "totally irrational", since the "openness to fissile nuclear technologies, which in reality have nothing new (starting with the failed Small modular reactors), after two referendums in Italy expressed themselves in the opposite direction, would in any case take much longer of those dictated by the trajectory of the transition", without considering "the relevant environmental risks connected and the very low social acceptability".

There are many studies that indicate that nuclear power, even the latest generation, is not at all as convenient as it is described.Just ten days ago, for example, the Government of Scotland stated that relying on wind and solar power is much more advantageous compared to producing energy through the use of mini nuclear reactors.In particular, it did harmonizing the data present in a document released in November 2023 by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) of the British government, which shows how the generation costs of offshore wind, onshore wind and large-scale solar are much lower than those of the new nuclear power plant.The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) also indicates that, in terms of costs, renewables represent the most efficient technologies in order to contain CO2 emissions.The International Energy Agency (IEA) also expressed its opinion on this point, certifying that on the European continent - both in relation to production costs and system costs - renewables will continue to be cheaper than nuclear to 2030 as well as 2050.According to described in a report drawn up by scientists from Stanford University and the University of British Columbia, mini nuclear reactors will also produce many more radioactive waste compared to conventional power plants.Waste for which, among other things, Italy has not yet managed to identify an adequate storage location.

[by Stefano Baudino]