Italian Minister of Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Pichetto stated in an interview published in the newspaper La Repubblica that the situation has turned into a “major emergency.”

He noted that his country’s government is evaluating interventions to support the productive sector in the face of rising energy costs.

Pichetto questioned the protracted negotiations with the European Commission regarding the so-called “Bollette” (Bills) decree—a set of urgent measures approved by the Italian government to curb the impact of high electricity and gas costs on household and business bills.

The minister explained that one of the measures under discussion involves eliminating the additional premium Italy pays for gas compared to the European reference price.

According to his statements, Rome is considering implementing this intervention even if it risks triggering an infringement procedure by the European Commission.

“These endless negotiations must be overcome,” he asserted, while advocating for the adoption of measures “in the national interest.”The issue is of particular significance to Italy due to the impact of energy costs on its industrial sector.

Pichetto noted that the European Union has set limits on using certain budget deviations for social interventions or measures directly aimed at lowering prices, but he argued that current price hikes are undermining the ability of industrial sectors to keep up operations.

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