The Rearticulation of Centre-Periphery Conflicts in the Energy Transition: an Analysis of Discursive Local Disputes Over RETs in Southern Italy

The energy crisis triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine has generated a new discourse positioning Southern Europe as a potential energy hub within the emerging European energy geography. While projects aimed at transforming Southern Europe into such a hub continue to rely heavily on gas infrastructure and asymmetrical relationships with North Africa, the energy-hub narrative is increasingly framed around decarbonization imperatives and the large-scale deployment of renewable energy technologies (RETs). Accordingly, the installation of RETs has accelerated in recent years in response to both decarbonization targets and energy-security emergencies, often generating local conflicts regarding their location. Starting from this, the paper proposes a comparative analysis of local conflicts over RETs in some regions of southern Italy, characterised by persistent economic marginalization yet targeted for substantial renewable energy investments. By adopting a discursive analytical perspective, we will show how conflicts over RETs are actually vehicles for broader opposing visions and projects regarding the model of energy transition and regional development, where broader dynamics between Global North and South and between the centre and the periphery are discursively rearticulated.