Giorgetti: “We will ask the European Union for the maximum for energy security”

The government intends to ask the European Commission the maximum space available for interventions on energy security, equal to 0.6% of GDP overall, while for defense it will stop at 0.9%. The Minister of Economy explained it, Giancarlo Giorgetti, speaking in the Chamber on communications relating to the national safeguard clause.

“The Government, based on the information currently available, intends, with the prior involvement of Parliament, to start discussions with the European Commission for the presentation of a Plan which envisages, in the three-year period covered by the NEC, an overall increase in spending for interventions related to energy security of approximately 0.6% of GDP and for security and defense of approximately 0.9% of GDP”, said the minister.

Speaking subsequently with reporters in Transatlantico, Giorgetti specified that “on the defense side we will not ask for the maximum, we will stop at 0.9%”, while on energy security “we will certainly ask for the full maximum: 0.3% plus 0.3%, equals 0.6%”.

Which expenses may fall within the clause

The European Commission has defined this precisely the type of eligible interventions. “The European Commission’s decision specifies the type of expenses and when they are accrued that can be used”, explained Giorgetti. “We will be able to move within the provisions of the Commission, which had a lot of difficulty in granting this exception on energy, but traced it to certain expenses, it is not that all those made in a certain period can be considered”.

According to the minister, only additional measures decided starting from 28 February 2026 and aimed at structurally improving the energy security of member states, promoting the green transition and reducing dependence on fossil fuels and foreign supplies are permitted. The interventions may concern families, productive activities, energy and transport infrastructures and, more generally, the public sector. They will also be coordinated with those envisaged by the Social Climate Plan.

Giorgetti: excise duties and subsidies excluded

However, they remain outside the clause measures intended only to temporarily alleviate the effects of the energy crisis. Giorgetti explicitly mentioned the reduction of excise duties and other forms of direct or indirect subsidies for energy products of fossil origin. “Measures that aim to only temporarily mitigate the effects of the current crisis appear to be excluded, such as for example the reduction of excise duties, or other forms of direct or indirect subsidy for energy products of fossil origin”, explained the minister. Initiatives in support of the private sector which, while indirectly contributing to the reduction of energy spending, do not lead to a structural improvement in the security and autonomy of the energy system would also be excluded.

The crux of the deficit and the EU procedure

The European Commission has invited Member States who intend to benefit from the flexibility spaces already in the evaluation of the 2027 Draft Budgetary Plan to submit the request for activation or extension of the clause by mid-August 2026. The request must contain a preliminary list of the measures to be financed and an estimate of the related costs. Brussels will evaluate the applications in September and will be able to recommend their approval to the EU Council, called to decide at the Ecofin meeting in October. Subsequently, the government will be able to proceed, with methods similar to those provided for in Article 6 of Law 243 of 2012, with the so-called budget deviation, indicating the extent of the clauses used and the interventions to which the resources should be allocated.

“The distribution of resources in the various financial years and the preparation of the necessary provisions for the implementation of the interventions will be proceeded with the next budget maneuver”, explained Giorgetti. Only at that moment will Parliament be called to formally decide on the deviation. The minister underlined that, in the absence of a formal procedure already implemented in the national accounting regulations, the government still deemed it necessary to appear before Parliament in advance to obtain authorization to start negotiations with the European Commission.

Giorgetti also called back the possible impact on public finances. If the excessive deficit procedure opened by the European Union in 2024 is not closed early, a subsequent worsening of the accounts such as to bring the deficit back above 3% could result in Italy remaining in the procedure.

This could happen even if the additional deficit was entirely attributable to expenses compatible with the parameters of the clause. In fact, the activation of the mechanism allows the deviations from the path of net expenditure to be justified, but the interventions continue to have full impact on the deficit. The Italian request may however be updated and integrated. The Member State will also have to provide the Commission, twice a year, by 15 April and 15 October, with the information necessary to monitor the implementation of the interventions.

Different rules for Defense

For defense-related expenditure the mechanism is different. During the presentation of the plan it is not necessary to promptly identify and quantify the interventions that determine the increase in spending. The additionality is in fact assessed on the basis of the overall trend of defense spending compared to the reference year. For Italy it should be 2024, when defense spending calculated according to the COFOG classification stood at 1.3% of GDP.

For the energy component, however, from the available information it would not appear that expenses accounted for beyond 2028 are eligible. The government will initiate technical discussions with the European institutions to verify the possibility of including investments started in the three-year period 2026-2028 but intended to produce effects also in subsequent years.