The Associated Press<\/a> writes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\u201cThe duty of the government at this moment is to create the conditions so that those who will eventually decide on installations will be able to do so,\u201d Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, minister for the Environment and Energy Security, told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n
Dramatic policy reversal<\/p>\n
Italy shut down its four nuclear reactors after a 1987 referendum held in the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster. A second attempt to revive nuclear energy collapsed after Japan\u2019s Fukushima accident in 2011, when around 94% of voters rejected plans for new reactors.<\/p>\n
Now, Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, concerns over energy security and rising electricity demand have prompted a major policy rethink.<\/p>\n
Rather than returning to large conventional reactors, the government is focusing on SMRs and other advanced technologies, which supporters say are safer, quicker to build and more flexible.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are talking about the third advanced generation (of nuclear power), much more workable compared to what are the needs, much safer because it is small in size with very short construction times,\u201d Pichetto Fratin said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people ask me for a timeline, I say 2033, 2034, 2035,\u201d he added, referring to when the first next-generation reactors could realistically begin operating.<\/p>\n
Generational divide over nuclear power<\/p>\n
As Italy debates its energy future, workers continue dismantling the country’s former nuclear infrastructure at the Latina nuclear plant south of Rome.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a generation that came right after Chernobyl that still sees nuclear energy in light of the accident at Chernobyl only,\u201d Viviana Cruciani, who oversees decommissioning work for state-owned company Sogin, told AP.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there is another generation, a lot younger, that is enthusiastic about nuclear, and it is even sorry that the country has not yet made any progress towards a comeback to this technology.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to a June 2026 survey by research firm Only Numbers cited by AP, about 55% of Italians support next-generation nuclear plants. Analysts say younger Italians are generally more receptive, viewing nuclear power as part of the transition to low-carbon energy rather than through the lens of past disasters.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think nuclear power can help the environment too. It\u2019s more sustainable,\u201d said 20-year-old Cristian Giannetti.<\/p>\n
Costs and political hurdles remain<\/p>\n
Despite growing support, critics argue that nuclear power remains expensive and unproven in its new forms.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we use nuclear as a backup … the average energy costs become devastating. So unfortunately it\u2019s not a good complement to renewables and it\u2019s not cheap,\u201d said Michele Governatori, a senior energy adviser at climate and energy think tank ECCO.<\/p>\n
Industry estimates cited by AP suggest a single 300-megawatt SMR could cost between 3 billion and 6 billion euros before infrastructure and grid expenses.<\/p>\n
Italy also faces the politically sensitive challenge of choosing locations for future reactors and long-term nuclear waste storage. The country still lacks a permanent national repository for existing nuclear waste, and any proposed sites are expected to face local opposition.<\/p>\n
Even if Parliament approves the legislation, environmental groups and opposition parties could push for another national referendum once specific reactor projects move forward, leaving Italy’s ambitious nuclear revival facing significant political tests.<\/p>\n
By Sabina Mammadli<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nearly four decades after the Chernobyl disaster prompted Italy to abandon nuclear power, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni\u2019s government…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36218,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[222,228,227,223,226,221,225,5,224,220],"class_list":["post-36217","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-italy","tag-analysis-of-azerbaijan","tag-azerbaijan","tag-baku","tag-important-news-of-azerbaijan","tag-international-experts","tag-interviews","tag-interviews-with-azerbaijani-analysts","tag-italy","tag-news-from-baku","tag-news-of-azerbaijan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36217","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36217"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36217\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36218"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36217"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36217"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36217"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}