Italy: Energy Release update: important clarification from GSE

Energy-intensive companies (EIUs) can either on their own or via an aggregator:

• purchase energy from GSE for 36 months at a fixed price of €65/MWh,
• and in return build new renewable generation capacity, through which the electricity previously received is repaid over 20 years.

The target is to increase resource efficiency, improve competitiveness, and promote the expansion of solar PV, wind, or hydropower.

The changes to the mechanism requested by the European Commission in summer 2025 meant that all contracts already concluded between EIUs and aggregators, or between aggregators and producers, had to be adapted at least to the new timeline. Among other things, these changes provide that the advance contract between GSE and the aggregator/EIU must be signed by 31 Jan 2026, and that the delegation of the obligation to deliver new renewable capacity to a producer is made via an addendum jointly signed by GSE, the aggregator/EIU, and the producer.

Producers used the introduction of the obligation to return any excess support (vantaggio residuo) at the end of the 20-year term to demand an increase in remuneration.

From a legal perspective, GSE’s potential recourse options in the event of non-performance by the aggregator/EIU/producer against the other party were the subject of discussion and were generally reflected in the contracts as a residual risk via indemnity clauses. The riskiest case in the 36-month advance phase is the loss of individual EIUs from the aggregate, or of the EIU in a bilateral contract without an aggregator’s involvement. Such a loss could occur due to insolvency or the loss of recognition as an EIU under the relevant Italian legislation (registration in the CSEA registers must remain in place for the entire advance period). Producers have often protected themselves against this risk by having their remuneration paid entirely upfront in the first months of 2026, calculated on the currently allocated electricity volume (with no possibility to adjust the remuneration).

Two important points remained open until recently: from when the addendum can be signed, and whether the unconditional guarantee (Garanzia Incondizionata) can also be provided solely by the producer, without the aggregator/EIU first providing its own guarantee as an intermediate step (which in any case requires the addendum to be signed).

Important clarification and deadline extension – GSE on 26 January 2026

On 26 January 2026, GSE officially announced that the addendum formalising the delegation to third parties will be signed via the GSE portal from 16 February to 9 March 2026. After that, signing of the addendum will be suspended until the auctions have been held, and will only be possible again afterwards.

It was also clarified that the unconditional guarantee can be provided directly by the producer after signing the addendum.

In addition, the deadline for submitting the unconditional guarantee was extended: instead of the original 28 February 2026, the new date is 9 March 2026. This extension applies to all participants—aggregator/EIU/producer—and is intended to ensure that all parties have sufficient time to correctly complete the required guarantee submission and the addendum before the next phase of the mechanism starts.

From the newsletter
“REInEws” Your partner for RE and transformation:
We are happy to advise you.