Renexia, towards a wind turbine supply chain in Italy

"Building a wind power industry in Italy is not easy, it is a challenge. We would like to build a production site, we believe it can be done. We have already heard from many Italian companies, including state-owned ones, who could be involved in the construction. The dream is to set up a turbine factory that could serve Italian offshore wind energy and the projects of the Mattei plan'. This is how Riccardo Toto, Renexia's general manager, describes the future plans of the Chieti-based company operating in the renewable energy sector (894 million euro value of production in 2023, with an Ebitda of 714 and a net profit of 204 and 1,290 employees), established in 2011 within the Toto Group.

The second generation of the family that also manages the A24 and A25 motorway sections, Toto leads the turn towards clean energy: 'Renewables are growing within the group, they represent the majority of projects,' he explains. It is a contamination: from recharging stations on motorways to solar parks to supply construction sites. As for the turbine hub, 'the decision on where to produce will have to be taken by June 2025, we would like to install a demonstration plant in the area concerned. At the moment we are willing to hold minority shares, since the turbine maker has to develop the project. The Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy is also directly interested: we are working with them to understand who could be the Italian entity to join the company,' Toto specifies.

The ambitious prospect is part of a robust pipeline of solar and wind farms, abroad and in Italy. "By the end of the year, the US subsidiary Us Wind will have permits to build a 1.7 GW fixed-foundation offshore wind farm off Maryland," says Toto, who points out that the capacity is potentially already covered by incentives, thanks to participation in local auctions. This is an '$8 billion investment. And then there is the 95 million commitment for the supply chain. The goal is to produce the first kWh by 2027-28, with a constant currency turnover value once operational of USD 1.5 billion per year'. There is no shortage of onshore wind power in the Mediterranean area, in Tunisia and Morocco: 'For the latter we have received a pre-notification for a 100 MW plant from the grid operator,' he continues.

In Italy, after the construction and operation of the first (and only in Italy) 30 MW offshore (or rather, near-shore) wind farm in Taranto, Renexia's onshore development counts on a 400 MW pipeline at various authorisation stages. While for solar, the projects reach 500 MW: 'We focus on non-productive areas and use, in some regions, the PPP form (public-private partnership, ndr),' explains Toto.

Med Wind, a 2.7 GW offshore park 80 km off the coast of Mazara del Vallo, remains the largest project in the Mediterranean: by July, the Sia (Environmental Impact Study) preparatory to the Single Authorisation will be presented, with estimated operations in 2027. The commitment is not only that of the over 9.5 billion euro investment (with 2 billion a year of turnover in operation), but also dialogue with local associations and fishermen. "An economic impact of 6 million per year has been calculated for them. We proposed to the Ministry of Agriculture the possibility of creating a foundation in which Med Wind (the special purpose company of which Toto is president, ndr) would pay this amount for 30 years. Provided that the foundation could spend the funds on the remotorisation of fishing boats, the development of plastic recycling, with recompactors on board and centres in Mazara and Trapani, the electrification of the port, and the possibility for boats, during the fishing stoppage period, to support the plant's maintenance activities'.