Between saying and doing for ensuring energy resources supply: The case of Italy in time of crisis

In recent years, the number of countries affected by deep geopolitical crises has grown, with global economic effects and implications on energy. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has highlighted the energy security of supply problems that characterize the European Union, heavily dependent on imported fossil sources from Russia. Italy is still very dependent on foreign energy imports. In this framework, it is crucial to investigate how much issues related to energy security have been considered by Italian governments to protect country's economic interests. The aim of this paper is to analyze to what extent energy security issues have been addressed in Italian energy policies and what actions have been implemented, using a content analysis approach. We have analyzed the reports published by Italian energy authorities in the period 2000–2020. According to our findings, several actions have been undertaken to address security of supply in Italy. The country is trying to diversify its fossil fuel mix and suppliers, even if a higher coordination among policy intervention is required. Several indicators such as CO2 emissions and geographical origin of imports confirm the difficulty to substitute fossil fuels usage in economic activities. However, other indicators, such as renewable energy sources consumption and carbon intensity of industry consumption show a positive trend. The results obtained reveal useful insights into changing policy priorities in security of supply.