Italy planning a nuclear renaissance

Of Europe's large industrialised countries, Italy has to fight the toughest battles to secure its energy supplies. For many years hopes have been pinned on gas – but now nuclear is back in the picture

In 1987, a year after the nuclear accident at Chernobyl, Italians voted to shut down and decommission their nuclear power stations – and the country became the only large industrialised state to do so. But now, the tide has turned. The government has set its sights on a new nuclear construction programme under which between eight and 10 reactors will be built, with the aim of supplying a quarter of Italy's electricity needs in 2030. According to Claudio Scajola, minister for economic development, in October, the shut-down decision was a "terrible mistake", which cost the country €50bn ($72bn), has resulted in electricity prices "one-third higher than in most of Europe" and has led to a very