On 18 April 2026, Law No. 49/2026 was published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale, converting into law, with amendments, Decree-Law No. 21/2026 (the “DL Bollette”). Article 4 of the aforementioned regulation introduces provisions aimed at promoting the long-term contracting of electricity production from renewable energy sources, by intervening on the so called bacheca PPA referred to in Article 28, paragraph 1, of Legislative Decree No. 199/2021 (the “Bacheca PPA”) as well as on the role of Gestore dei Servizi Energetici S.p.A. (“GSE”) as guarantor of last call, also providing for the involvement of SACE S.p.A.
These developments supplement the provisions already set forth in Decree No. 152 of 20 June 2025, adopted by the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security (“MASE”) and the Ministry of Economy and Finance (“MEF”), in compliance with the provisions of Article 28, paragraphs 2 and 2-bis, of Legislative Decree No. 199/2021, which provided specific guidelines to Gestore dei Mercati Energetici S.p.A. (“GME”) for the establishment of a new organised market dedicated to the negotiation of PPAs (the “MPPA”) and determined the criteria and conditions under which the GSE may assume the role of guarantor of last call for PPAs negotiated on the MPPA.
Between July and August 2025, GME and GSE concluded two public consultations concerning, respectively, (i) the proposed operating model for the MPPA (the “Operating Model”) and (ii) the proposed operational rules for the qualification of entities intending to participate in the MPPA and for the regulation of the GSE's guarantee of last call (the “Operational Rules”). Notwithstanding the closure of both consultations, the Operating Model and the Operational Rules have not yet been officially published.
The new section of the Bacheca PPA
Pursuant to the regulations published by GME (the “Bacheca PPA Regulations”), the Bacheca PPA is divided into three separate sections: the announcements section, the contract registration section and the energy release section.
Within the announcements section, operators interested in executing long-term contracts for the purchase or sale of electricity from renewable energy sources may publish their announcements on an anonymous and non-binding basis. Among the other characteristics that the contracts forming the subject matter of such announcements must satisfy, pursuant to the technical operating provisions of the Bacheca PPA published by GME, there is the requirement of a minimum duration of no less than 5 years.
Article 4(1)of the DL Bollette provides that the Bacheca PPA shall be implemented through the introduction of a new section specifically dedicated to the execution of contracts which, on the purchase side, (i) shall have a minimum duration of no less than 3 years and (ii) may also be negotiated in aggregate form, based on location, consumption profile or membership of specific industry sectors. On the supply side, the electricity traded under such contracts shall not be, or become, subject to support mechanisms for the production of energy from renewable sources.
Such agreements are executed between the parties outside the Bacheca PPA – also with the advice of the GSE – and are subject to a mandatory registration obligation on the relevant section of Bacheca PPA.
The extension of the role of the GSE as guarantor of last call
Article 4(2) of the DL Bollette provides that the parties may request the GSE to assume the role of guarantor of last call also in relation to contracts entered into through the new section of the Bacheca PPA. To this end, the GSE shall identify forms of risk minimisation and transfer for the contracting parties within the scope of the defined contract typologies, including by availing itself of SACE S.p.A.
In particular, for the portion exceeding the available resources and only once the financial resources allocated to the guarantee of last call pursuant to Article 28, paragraph 2-bis, of Legislative Decree No. 199/2021 have been exhausted, SACE S.p.A. is authorised to issue guarantees in favour of the GSE at market conditions, for a maximum coverage percentage not exceeding 70 per cent.
Within 90 days from the date of entry into force of the DL Bollette, MASE and MEF are expected to approve the operational rules, as proposed by the GSE, to implement the foregoing with reference to, among others things, (i) the requirements to be satisfied for benefiting from the access to the guarantee of last call as well as (ii) the standard form of the contracts to access to the guarantee of last call service (the “New Operational Rules”).
The requirements for access to the guarantee of last call
The Operating Model and the Operational Rules states subjective requirements for participation in the Electricity Market and for the assumption by the GSE of the role of guarantor of last call in the MPPA that are particularly onerous.
Indeed, all participants in the MPPA, in addition to being entities duly registered as “attive” with the competent chamber of commerce and holding a rating no lower than the investment grade, shall:
obtain the qualification as market operators pursuant to the rules governing the Electricity Market (GME), satisfying all relevant requirements thereunder;
be balance responsible party of one or more renewable energy production plants that have entered into operation or have been authorised, if acting as sellers (GSE);
be balance responsible party of one or more offtake points, as defined in the TIT, if acting as purchasers (GSE).
As previously noted, such requirements and the related burdens (including in terms of professional qualifications and guarantee instruments) for participation in the Electricity Market and, thus, in the MPPA, may constitute an obstacle to accessing the guarantee of last call provided by the GSE, both for the special purpose vehicles that typically hold the production plants and for energy-intensive companies.
However, the Bacheca PPA and the possibility of accessing the last call guarantee instrument provided by the GSE also for contracts entered into through the Bacheca PPA may enable operators to overcome such obstacle.
Indeed, the Article 14 of the Bacheca PPA Regulations provides that the entities - which intends to participate to the Bacheca PPA - shall only have adequate professionalism and competence in the use of electronic systems and security systems, without any additional or different requirements and/or the provision of specific guarantee instruments in favour of GME, as is the case for adhesion to the Electricity Market and the MPPA.
A significant development
The provision introduced by Article 4 of the DL Bollette could, therefore, represent a significant instrument for overcoming the obstacles – at least with regard to subjective requirements – that precluded the access to the MPPA and to the GSE’s guarantee of last call, thereby enabling also those entities lacking the requirements set forth in Operating Model and the Operational Rules to benefit from the guarantee mechanism provided by the GSE.
Nonetheless, through the Bacheca PPA, only physical power purchase agreement may be entered into, with the exclusion of virtual contracts (so-called virtual PPAs) which, in light of their growing relevance in market practice, should likewise have access to such guarantee instrument.
Therefore, it will be necessary to await the publication of the New Operational Rules – or the revision of those already submitted for consultation – in order to ascertain whether the facilitations to access to the guarantee instrument set out above are effectively endorsed by the regulator and, consequently, whether the new subjective requirements for access to the Bacheca PPA will allow for an effective utilisation of the instrument, in line with the objective of promoting the long-term contracting of electricity produced from renewable energy sources.
