Italy's demand for natural gas is expected to jump more than 20% to about 2.1 tcf/year by 2000.
That's the forecast of Snam, gas subsidiary of state owned energy holding company Ente Nazionale ldrocarburi. Snam in 1993 delivered 1.74 tcf to Italian markets, an increase of 52.5 bcf from the year before.
Although the increase of 3% in gas demand may seem slight, it compares with a drop of 15.1% in Italy's overall demand for solid fuels and a 2% decline in demand for fuel oil.
The overall increase in gas demand also occurred despite a 37% plunge in gas demand by Italy's petrochemical sector and slightly reduced demand by the residential heating sector due to mild weather last year.
The gas share of Italy's total energy mix stands at 25.6%, up from the year before.
That trend is expected to continue as state owned electric utility ENEL and private companies step up the use of combined cycle gas turbines to generate electrical power. New technologies, including gas cofiring and cogeneration, are expected to further the trend, as are new end uses, including air conditioning and compressed natural gas fuel for public vehicle fleets.
In addition, sales of residential gas heating appliances have risen 200% during the past 12 years.
Snam expects to have complete within 3 years its plans to set up a national gas grid in Italy, linking another 500 towns.
Of Snam's gas supplies delivered in Italy in 1993, 35% was produced domestically by affiliate Agip SpA and other companies, 28% was imported from Algeria via the trans-Med pipeline, 26% from Russia, and 11% from Netherlands.
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