Intervento di Carlo Pignoloni - Stati Generali della Green Economy 2017

I thank you for the invitation and for this session with complex questions. Enel Green Power and Enel have had remarkable growth because we believed in renewable energy development. Europe was the cradle of renewables, but the market currently suffers most, and we need to return to Europe with new rules. The success of renewables came through systems designed for them, different from fossil fuels. My goal, without politics, is to highlight the elements needed to reassert renewables in Europe. The main issue is that Europe's market design hasn't changed to accommodate renewables, which are now the most important energy generation source. We need a market design shift to meet ambitious targets; otherwise it's frustrating. Auctions and technology neutrality, as seen in Spain, are essential. However, we see a fragmentation of actions, with national boundaries becoming serious barriers. Political will is necessary for supranational efforts. Another key topic is flexibility: the development of renewables requires network flexibility and security, as seen in Germany and Denmark, where local dispatch management enables effective demand-side management. Storage, especially electrochemical batteries and vehicle-to-grid, is scalable and innovative. In New York, batteries are used to reduce peak loads instead of building new grids. Mobility electrification is about efficiency—there's no doubt the shift to electric is within reach. We believe the market and innovation, not regulation, will determine the future, but electric mobility must be part of it, as China demonstrates. Europe was the frontrunner, but we risk becoming followers unless we unite our efforts. A systemic approach is essential to achieve our decarbonization goals by 2050.