Society and local communities

Consultation with local governments

Terna’s approach to local communities comes into play especially when the Company constructs new lines – on which see the chapter on Environmental Responsibility – and consists in engaging local institutions (Regions, Provinces, Municipalities, Parks).This process includes listening to stakeholders’ opinions and the pursuit of an agreed on solution for the location of the new infrastructure and the reorganization of existing infrastructure. The dialogue between Terna and local institutions requires about 20 resources of the Institutional Affairs Department, who devote themselves to institutional meetings and joint on-the-spot investigations with all the bodies concerned. This is an intense activity, because the process that precedes and accompanies the authorization of  new works is very complex.      

The pre-authorization process lasts on average from one to three years and entails the following activities:

• meetings to define and formalize cooperation as part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment
• meetings to define a system of criteria for analyzing the local area and select the alternatives with the least impact  
• meetings to apply the criteria to the local area and identify the corridor in which the work is to be constructed
• meetings to define the feasibility strip inside the corridor and the related protocols of understanding
• meetings to define and formalize conventions and compensations.

The authorization process is implemented through service conferences and lasts on average from one to two years.   

The following table summarizes the participatory decision-making processes with the stakeholders concerned on energy planning and infrastructure development, as well as the results of the engagement.

THE MAIN CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES