Elettricità, come programmare i consumi e tagliare i costi in bolletta

In the first four months of 2026, adjusting electricity consumption throughout the day could lead to significant cost reductions, from 5% to nearly 69%, with price cuts reaching up to 59 euros per MWh. By reducing demand by 2-5 GW, around 5-10% of Italy's total load, the average Pun price could potentially drop by 30-50 euros per MWh, resulting in a 10-30% decrease.

This is due to the flexibility of demand in bulk electricity markets, as highlighted by Flexit, an Italian association under the European SmartEn group, which brings together companies from the sector such as retailers, aggregators, and technology producers like Enel, Octopus Energy, Energy Pool, Ariston, and NTT Data. Flexibility on the demand side (Dsf) refers to consumers' ability to respond to external signals and adapt their energy production and consumption in a dynamic manner, both individually and with the help of market players (retailers and aggregators).

These flexumer can lower their own bills by exploiting the variation in daily electricity prices through dynamic tariffs. By joining forces and shifting large volumes of demand and flattening peaks, they can bring down the overall price of electricity, thanks to more cost-effective technologies. Moreover, they help reduce the risk of curtailment, or cutting renewable energy production during times of low demand (640 GWh of wind energy and 162 GWh of solar energy were curtailed in 2025, though still relatively low in Italy).

The system should also benefit from managing peak loads. In the European Union, this is already possible in France, where demand response aggregators can participate in bulk markets through the NEBCO (Notification d’Echange de Blocs de Consommation) mechanism, leading to reduced electricity prices down to 60 euros per MWh during peak times.

Currently, Italy has four pilot projects for local demand flexibility markets: Unareti in Milan, Areti in Rome, E-Distribution in Central Italy, and AcegasApsAmga in Trieste, which reward customers who provide the area with their flexibility through auctions. Flexibility has been foreseen by the European Union since 2019 with Directive 2019/944 (Electricity Market Directive) and Regulation 2019/943 (Electricity Market Regulation).

Arera launched the initiative in Italy in 2021, but each region has its own rules. Now, there is a need for a common framework of norms to create an actual market where operators can develop scalable businesses.