Italian legislation on nuclear energy is advancing in parliament.

Italy’s Chamber of Deputies has greenlit a bill from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's administration that sets the stage for the nation's return to nuclear energy.

In October of the previous year, Italy's Council of Ministers, led by Meloni, approved a bill for the government's final consideration regarding the reintroduction of nuclear energy. This bill authorizes the government to comprehensively manage the reintroduction of 'sustainable' nuclear power in line with European decarbonisation goals by 2050 and energy security aims. The mandate includes developing a National Programme for Sustainable Nuclear Power, forming an independent Nuclear Safety Authority, enhancing scientific and industrial research, fostering new skills, and launching information and awareness campaigns.

The Chamber of Deputies has passed the bill with 155 votes in favor, 86 against, and eight abstentions.

The bill will now proceed to the Senate, where the government anticipates it will receive final approval before the summer recess at the end of July. The implementing legislative decrees are to be enacted within a year of the law coming into effect.

Italy operated four nuclear power plants starting in the early 1960s but decided to phase out nuclear energy following a referendum linked to the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. The last two plants, Caorso and Trino Vercellese, were shut down in 1990.

In late March 2011, in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster, the Italian government imposed a moratorium of at least one year on the construction of nuclear power plants, as the country sought to revive its abandoned nuclear program. A poll conducted in June of that year showed that 94% of voters opposed the construction of new nuclear reactors in Italy.

Since then, attitudes toward nuclear energy have shifted positively in Italy. In May 2023, the Italian Parliament approved a motion urging the government to explore the integration of nuclear power into the energy mix. In September of the same year, the inaugural meeting of the National Platform for Sustainable Nuclear Power took place, organized by the government to outline a timeline for potentially reinstating nuclear energy and identify opportunities for the existing industrial sector.