| Abstract: | Italy imports more than 83 per cent of its primary energy. In particular, the Italian agricultural sector imports 100 per cent of its primary energy needs. Today, an effort is being made towards a better mix of primary sources and towards reducing the country's dependence on imports, especially in this sector where there are considerable endogenous energy sources. Solar thermal energy and energy from biomass can be substituted for oil. The present paper analyses the end uses of energy in Italian agriculture and assesses the amount which can be substituted by solar thermal and biogas technologies. For each end use category, the benefits of renewable technologies are compared with the economics of non-renewable sources. The results of the analyses show that the most competitive technologies are biogas systems, passive solar systems (especially solar greenhouses) and energy-saving measures. Active solar systems are close to the threshold of competitiveness for low temperature heating, so that their penetration is very dependent on fuel prices and on the politics of financial subsidies. |
