Energy transition, interest groups, incumbent companies and alternative coalitions: navigating the Italian energy policy between the post-pandemic recovery plan and the Russian-Ukrainian war
PRIN 2022 – Forma November 2023 – November 2025
Head of the Unibo Research Unit: Renata Lizzi
The aim of the research project is to study the energy transition with reference to the Italian case focusing on interest groups dynamics and actors’ coalitions as relevant factors in determining national energy policies. Even if renewable energy technologies have become increasingly competitive, appropriate policies continue to remain critically important for their future development.
National arenas are key on this regard: public policies at this level implement international (and EU) agreements and programs, and provide financial and regulatory support for increasing the role of renewables in the energy mix. Different actors’ coalitions hence seek to influence national energy policymaking, and policy developments will help determine the ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ of the energy transition. The proposed research project focuses on the role of interest groups, big businesses and advocacy coalitions in the process of energy transition at the national level. Particularly, the research project intends to elucidate the structure and composition of these actors’ coalitions and their role in the policy making process concerning the financial and regulatory measures supporting (or hindering) the deployment of renewable energy technologies at the national level.
The research project intends to analyse these dynamics with reference to the Italian case. Although the research project covers the beginning of the Italian energy transition and the initial development of the Italian renewable energy policy subsystem, its main empirical focus will be on two key time-phases: the post-pandemic period, characterized by the formulation and implementation of the Italian recovery plan (PNRR); and the post 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine period, characterized by the energy crisis and the EU and national response to the crisis. These two periods represent critical junctures for the Italian energy transition. The decisions taken in these junctures will shape the future development of the Italian energy policy and energy system.
Website: https://dsps.unibo.it/it/ricerca/progetti-di-ricerca
Members of the Department
Other members
| Andrea Prontera | Principal Investigator - Associate Professor - Department of Political Sciences, Communication and International Relations - University of Macerata |
| Luca Germano | Head of the UniRoma3 Research Unit - Associate Professor – Department of Political Science - University of Roma Tre |
| Claudia Mariotti |
Research Fellow at the UniRoma3 Research Unit – Department of Political Science – University of Roma Tre |
Publications
Luca Germano; Renata Lizzi, The implementation of NRRP policies between politics and policy. An interest group perspective, «CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN POLITICS», 2024, 3/2023, pp. 1 - 15 [articolo] https://cris.unibo.it/handle/11585/966447
Lizzi, Renata; Prontera, Andrea, The NRRP and the Italian energy transition. Interest groups in implementation, between structural power, insiderness and new coalitions, «CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN POLITICS», 2024, 16, pp. 54 - 73 [articolo] https://cris.unibo.it/handle/11585/966446
Andrea Prontera; Renata Lizzi, La politica energetica nazionale da riorientare, in: Politica in Italia 2023 - I fatti dell'anno e le interpretazioni, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2023, pp. 252 - 268 [capitolo di libro] https://cris.unibo.it/handle/11585/935657
Andrea Prontera; Renata Lizzi, The necessary reorientation of Italian energy policy, «CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN POLITICS», 2023, 15, pp. 252 - 268 [articolo] https://cris.unibo.it/handle/11585/935656
Andrea Prontera; Paola Arrigoni; Renata Lizzi; Alessandro Rubino, Relaunching the Italian Energy Transition: Incumbent Electric Utilities from Resistance to Support?, Energy Research & Social Science, accepted submission/ under revision.
Conferences, lectures and talks
Bologna 23 – 24 maggio 2024 – Standing Groups SISP GdI & SP PP con DSPS Università di Bologna - Politica e politiche ai tempi del PNRR - Il Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza: interessi in gioco e sfide attuative. Quali scenari?
Trieste 12 – 14 Settembre 2024 SISP Società Italiana di Scienza della Politica Convegno Annuale – Sezione VI - Politiche Pubbliche e Scienza dell’Amministrazione Panel 6.10 (Chairs L. Germano, R. Lizzi, A. Prontera) – Who governs the twin transitions of energy and digital in Europe? Elites, network coalitions, emerging interests and strategies, between private and public sphere.
Macerata 5-6 Giugno 2025 Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche Comunicazione e Relazioni Internazionali - STUDIARE LE TRANSIZIONI ENERGETICHE, AMBIENTALI E INDUSTRIALI Progetti PRIN a confronto. Con la partecipazione di studiosi/ricercatori di UniBo, UniRomaTre, UniPd, UniPi, UniCal, SNS, UniTe.