Proxigas: «Il gas è strategico per la sicurezza energetica italiana. Regolazione supporti l’evoluzione del settore per garantire efficienza e decarbonizzazione»

Rome, September 11, 2026 - Natural gas remains a strategic component of Italy's energy system and economic fabric, according to Pier Lorenzo Dell’Orco, president of Proxigas. The integration of more sustainable vectors such as biogas, hydrogen, and gas with low or zero CO2 content, through existing infrastructure, is crucial to accompany the transition to a fair energy transition.

After the decline in consumption during the 2022-23 energy crisis, demand for gas has rebounded by 2.1% in 2025 and 1% in the first seven months of 2026. Gas plays a crucial role in thermoelectric generation, with consumption in July 2026 increasing by 18% compared to the same month the previous year. Industry continues to rely on gas, particularly in high-temperature processes, while the residential sector accounts for nearly 50% of energy demand and provides heat for about 70% of Italian homes.

Approximately 6 million units could be equipped with heat pumps economically, while the rest will be around 2 million.

Gas is a central resource in remote heating, with its share at 70% of consumption. In cogeneration, it accounts for about 81% of installed capacity, while renewable sources contribute only 8%. Gas ensures national industrial competitiveness, offering flexibility and reliability in the energy transition. Relying solely on electrification, often incompatible with our buildings' characteristics, could be ineffective in achieving climate goals and burdensome for Italian families.

The economic impact of climate policies should also be considered. The new ETS2 system will affect buildings; assuming an average price of 60 euros per ton of CO2, the economic impact could be around 160 euros per year for a family. The existing network and infrastructure represent a strategic asset to accompany the energy system's evolution toward progressively more sustainable vectors, including biogas, hydrogen, and gas with low or zero CO2 content, as well as carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCS-CCUS) technologies.

The goal is to maximize the value of existing infrastructure and develop new infrastructure to integrate new forms of energy, avoiding wasting an infrastructure that ensures today's security, flexibility, and resilience. Proxigas identifies a series of priorities to accompany the energy system's evolution: strengthening security and diversification of supplies, promoting wholesale markets for liquid gases and efficient ones, maximizing national infrastructure assets, defining an enabling regulatory framework for decarbonization, strengthening retail market integrity while preserving its dynamism, promoting proper market representation to increase consumer awareness and engagement, and simplifying the ROSS discipline.

Regulation is called upon to translate energy policy directions into consistent regulatory signals, ensuring the gas sector remains central in the national energy system, capable of expressing its potential in terms of competitiveness, supply security, and sustainability.