Our power plants are an attractive destination for school trips. They provide a close-up look at the world of energy and an understanding of how it works, while also promoting interest in scientific and technological subjects. In 2022, we hosted more than 23,000 young visitors at our Italian plants.
School field trips are an excellent way to get young students excited about a subject, as they break the routine of classroom learning. They improve social interaction among students and with teachers, develop a sense of autonomy, and stimulate curiosity and research through direct experiences and better knowledge of the real world. While this is true for art, science, and nature, it also applies to energy, in particular renewable energy.
That is why, for several years now, we have been offering opportunities to discover first hand, through exciting and entertaining educational activities, the world of energy: how it is generated, how power plants work, their main safety features and the vital role of the professionals who work at them day. And through these kinds of initiatives, which are led by experienced colleagues, we also promote the development of students’ communication, mathematical, scientific and technological skills.
Dozens of plants to visit
37 of our plants in Italy are open to visitors. These are mainly hydroelectric power plants, but also geothermal, wind and solar farms. Visits are sometimes arranged through local community associations.
In 2022, we hosted some 830 field trips with a total of more than 23,000 students.
The center that received the most visits (3,420) was Larderello in Tuscany, the oldest geothermal complex in the world. In addition to providing electricity, these power plants also deliver direct heat to thousands of homes as well as to farms, greenhouses and dairies, thus supporting the area’s large agricultural and gastronomic sector.
Second place goes to the “Alessandro Taccani” hydroelectric power plant in Trezzo sull’Adda, which had 3,275 visitors. The plant is in the “Liberty” Art Nouveau architectural style with medieval elements.
Also among the top attractions was our hydroelectric power plant in Entracque in Piedmont, which is named in honor of the first president of the Republic of Italy, Luigi Einaudi. It is the largest such plant in the country and among the largest in Europe. It also comprises two dams offering breathtaking views of the Maritime Alps.
The “Ludovico Il Moro” hydroelectric power plant in Vigevano, Lombardy, also had a large influx of visitors with 1,803 students visiting its “Liberty” Art Nouveau-style architecture.
In southern Italy, one of the most popular plants is the Anapo hydroelectric power station near Syracuse in Sicily, which received 1,250 visitors during the year. In Calabria, in Acri, the Mucone 1 Salto plant, which is named after Adele Giannone, who promoted the electrification of this area in the early 1900s, received about 1,000 visitors from 20 schools.
Student visits are also organized at many wind farms, most notably one in Portoscuso, Sardinia, which is providing renewable energy for the island’s decarbonization drive.
2022 thus saw wide interest from schools, and this year we will continue to open our doors to visitors, especially students. This will give young people the opportunity to learn first hand and up close what renewables are all about, thereby raising awareness among the younger generation about environmental issues, as well as the green jobs of the future.
