Calabria continues to pay a high price for energy and to feel the effects of the energy crisis and the slowdown in green investments. This is what emerges from the report “The energy challenges and green transition for companies in Calabria – Key Data 2025” of the MPI Confartigianato Calabria Observatory, which photographs a production system still under pressure but also full of potential to be exploited.
In 2024, Calabrian companies in the sectors with a greater concentration of artisans and micro and small businesses – food, fashion, wood, metals and various manufacturing – incurred a cost of electricity of 53 million euros, with a spread of 10 million compared to the European average. At a national level, Italian SMEs pay 22.5% more for energy than the EU average, also due to taxes and parafiscal charges that are more than double the European average.
Calabrian families’ spending on electricity and gas amounts to 1.2 billion euros, equal to 5.6% of total spending (against 4.7% of the national average) and 3.3% of regional GDP, the highest figure in Italy. The provinces of Cosenza and Vibo Valentia record the highest incidence on GDP (3.7% and 3.5% respectively), followed by Crotone (3.2%) and Reggio Calabria (3.1%).
On the energy inflation front, electricity and gas prices in Calabria still remain 44.4% higher than in 2021, albeit with a less pronounced dynamic compared to the national figure (+49.8%). A signal that highlights how the price bubble has not yet completely subsided.
Another critical indicator concerns investments in technologies with a lower environmental impact: in 2024 only 24.9% of Calabrian companies invested in green solutions, down by almost five points compared to 2023. The regional ranking is led by Vibo Valentia (30.8%), followed by Reggio Calabria (29.9%), while in Cosenza the propensity has dropped drastically (-11.5 points).
The credit crunch and the delay in the implementation of the “Transition 5.0” plan are weighing heavily, which left over 3.9 billion euros unused at a national level, equal to 63% of available resources.
Despite the difficulties, the Calabrian production fabric shows a strong orientation towards sustainability: 83.4% of the expected new hires require skills related to energy saving and environmental sustainability, but almost one worker in two (48.1%) is difficult to find.
«The photograph of our Observatory – comments Salvatore Ascioti, president of Confartigianato Imprese Calabria – clearly shows that the energy transition cannot be sustainable if it is not also fair. Micro and small businesses in Calabria face a double disadvantage every day: energy costs that are still too high and difficulties in accessing incentives. Yet, despite this, almost one in four has already chosen to invest in green. It is a sign of trust that must be collected and accompanied.”
«The priority – adds Ascioti – must be to build a stable and shared regional energy strategy, which combines industrial policies, training and innovation. We need a Calabrian energy plan that encourages self-production from renewable sources, supports business investments and reduces external dependence. The competitiveness of our companies passes through here, as does the possibility of building a more resilient and sustainable economy for the entire territory.”