Italy was one of the first European countries to completely stop
domestic coal production, with the last facility closing in
2001. The importance of coal in Italys energy needs declined to
only 7.3 percent in 2003, one of the lowest levels in the EU.
The country consumed 24.2 million short tons (Mmst) of coal in
2003, the bulk of which fueled electricity generation. According
to Eurostat, Italian imports of coal during the first ten months
of 2005 came principally from South Africa (20 percent),
Colombia (13 percent), and Australia (12 percent). Italy had
69.5 gigawatts of installed electricity generating capacity in
2003. In that same year, Italy generated 270 billion
kilowatthours (Bkwh) of electricity, while consuming 302 Bkwh.
Most generation comes from conventional thermal sources (82
percent), with smaller amounts from hydroelectricity (13
percent) and other renewables (4 percent). Electricity imports
made up for the countrys supply shortfalls, and according to
Eurostat, the largest sources of these imp