Environmentally aware, but far from the market: the relationship between young people and energy
Enel-Luiss Foundation research photographs a generational paradox: high environmental awareness, low participation in energy choices. Price remains the only lever that really works
Key points
Only one in six choose their energy supplier independently. A third do not even know their annual consumption. Yet the same generation declares itself the most attentive to the fate of the planet. This is the paradox of young Italians and energy, photographed by the research 'Young people and the energy market in Italia: attitudes, choices and barriers in the energy transition'. The study, conducted on a sample of 602 young people aged between 18 and 34, was presented at the Luiss University and promoted by the Enel Foundation.
The market perceived as a maze
Let's look at the numbers. The level of knowledge of the energy market stops at 2.7 on a scale of 1 to 5. The ability to read a bill drops again: 2.6. Numbers that do not improve significantly even among the most experienced workers in the sample.
And again: only 15% of the young respondents chose their supplier independently. If the perimeter is widened to include choices shared with a partner or family member, the share of 'active' people reaches 50%. The other half do not participate in the decision-making process, in many cases because they still live at home with their parents. It is not just a question of age. Among those who do not know their energy consumption, the share exceeds one third of the entire sample. The figure rises among students who are not yet self-employed, but also remains high among workers.
Price as a compass
When it comes to choosing a supplier, young people are only clear about price. With an average score of 4.6 out of 5, affordability dominates over everything. In second place is the clarity of the offers (4.2), while additional services, flexibility programmes and the possibility of obtaining products at favourable prices garner significantly lower ratings.
The same logic governs the barriers to the adoption of energy efficiency and electrification technologies: high initial cost is cited by 20% of the sample as the main obstacle, with a score of 4.5 out of 5. They come after, for example, the fear of inferior performance or doubts about the real sustainability of the products.
