A
ARERA (formerly AEEGSI Electricity, Gas and Water Authority): Italian Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and Environment.
ARPA: Regional Environmental Protection Agency.
ASPP: Prevention and Protection Service Officer.
ATERSIR: Territorial Agency of Emilia-Romagna for Water and Waste Services.
B
BEST AVAILABLE TECHNIQUES (BAT): best available technologies for pollution prevention and control.
BIOGAS: formation of gas, by anaerobic fermentation in the presence of microorganism bacteria, of waste or sludge from urban water treatment; the methane contained in the biogas can be used for energy production.
BOD: the term BOD (biochemical oxygen demand) refers to the amount of oxygen consumed during a given time, at a given temperature, to decompose organic substances in water through the action of bacteria (cellular respiration). A high biochemical oxygen demand is the index of an intense bacterial activity for organic decomposition and highlights the presence of organic pollution. This is an indirect measure of pollutant load. Its value is expressed in %.
C
CLEANTECH: any process, product or service that reduces negative environmental impacts through significant improvements in energy efficiency, sustainable use of resources or environmental protection activities.
CO: carbon monoxide.
CO2: carbon dioxide.
COD: the term COD (chemical oxygen demand) means the amount of oxygen necessary for the complete oxidation of organic and inorganic compounds present in a water sample. It is an index measuring the degree of pollution of water by oxidisable substances, mainly organic. Its value is expressed in %.
CODE OF ETHICS: a document that defines the principles, behaviours, commitments, and ethical responsibilities that must be complied with by directors, employees, and collaborators in all company activities.
COGENERATION: simultaneous production of electrical and thermal energy.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE: set of rules according to which companies are managed and controlled.
CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
D
DISTRICT HEATING: remote transmission of heat by circulating water in two pipes, one supplying hot water and one returning colder water.
E
EIA: Environmental Impact Assessment.
EIB: European Investment Bank, an institution of the European Union for financing investments in support of the Union’s policy objectives.
E-LEARNING: learning through multimedia courses that can be used mainly remotely through online systems.
ELECTRICITY SERVICES PROVIDER (GSE): Joint-Stock Company (Article 3 of Italian Legislative Decree 79/99) whose shares are held by the Ministry of the Treasury, which provides incentives for the production of electricity from renewable and similar sources and is responsible for the qualification of renewable source plants and their production.
EMAS (ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND AUDIT SCHEME): environmental management and audit scheme according to EU Regulation 761/2001.
EMISSION TRADING SYSTEM (ETS): flexible mechanism, provided for in the Kyoto agreements, for trading emission rights between countries or companies in relation to their respective greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.
END CUSTOMER: natural or legal person who purchases electricity exclusively for his/her own use.
ENERGY EFFICIENCY CERTIFICATES (EEC) (also known as White Certificates): energy savings certificates for which electricity and gas distributors with a customer base of more than 50,000 are required. EECs are valid for five years and are issued by the GME (Decree of the Ministry of Productive Activities dated 20/7/04, in agreement with the Minister for the Environment and Protection of the Land).
ENERGY SERVICE COMPANY (ESCo): companies that carry out interventions aimed at improving energy efficiency, assuming the risk of the initiative and freeing the final customer from any organisational and investment burden.
ETHICAL INDEXES: indexes that monitor the performance of a selection of companies according to economic, ethical, environmental and social criteria.
G
GAS TURBINE: a machine that converts the energy possessed by the steam generated in a boiler or by geothermal steam into the mechanical energy of a rotating axis.
GIGAJOULE (GJ): unit of measurement of energy (of any nature) adopted in the international system (3.6 GJ corresponds to 1 GWh).
GIGAWATT (GW): unit of measurement of power (of any nature) equal to one million kilowatts.
GIGAWATT-HOUR (GWh): unit of measurement of energy (of any nature) equal to one million kilowatt-hours.
GREEN BOND: bond instruments whose proceeds are used exclusively to finance or refinance all or part of projects/activities with a clear positive impact on the environment (Eligible Projects/Activities).
GREEN CERTIFICATES: annual certificates issued by the GSE certifying the production from renewable sources of 1 MWh of energy. Since 2002 (Decree 79/99) producers and importers have been obliged to feed energy from renewable sources into the grid in quantities equal to a percentage of the total electricity from conventional sources produced or imported in the previous year (net of exports, self-consumption by power stations and cogeneration).
GREENHOUSE GASES: gases that do not allow the dispersion of heat from the earth and therefore produce overheating of the atmosphere. In addition to those of natural origin, the main anthropogenic greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, methane, chlorofluorocarbons and nitrogen oxides.
GROSS PRODUCTION: electrical energy produced during the period of time considered, measured at the terminals of the electric generator.
H
HSR: Workers’ Health and Safety Representative.
HV: high voltage, i.e. 132 kV, 220 kV and 380 kV.
HYDROELECTRIC: a system that transforms the potential energy of water into electrical energy. Hydroelectric plants may be of the flowing water, basin and reservoir type.
I
IEA: Integrated Environmental Authorisation.
K
KILOCALORIE (kcal): unit of measurement of heat (thermal energy). One kcal is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree centigrade.
KILOVOLT (kV): unit of measurement of voltage equal to 1,000 Volts.
KILOWATT (kW): unit of measurement of power (of any kind) equal to 1,000 Watts.
KILOWATT-HOUR (kWh): unit of measurement of energy (of any kind) equal to 1,000 Watts for one hour.
L
LANDFILL MINING: excavation of waste deposited in landfills and its subsequent treatment for the inertisation of hazardous fractions and the separation and selection of the different components (fine material, recoverable fractions and residues), intended for separate management.
LV: low voltage, i.e. 220/380 V.
M
MbO: Management by Objectives
MEGAWATT (MW): unit of measurement of power (of any kind) equal to one million Watts.
MEGAWATT-HOUR (MWh): unit of measurement of energy (of any kind) equal to one thousand kilowatt-hours.
MV: medium voltage, i.e. voltages between 1 and 30 kV. N
N
NET PRODUCTION: gross production minus consumption for services required to operate the generating group.
NOTCH: level in the rating measurement scale.
NOX: nitrogen monoxide.
O
OHSAS 18001 (Occupational Health & Safety Assessment Series): is an international reference standard for the certification of an occupational health and safety management system (standard valid until 13/03/2021 – some Group companies are currently in the process of transitioning to the new ISO 45001 standard).
OPTIMAL TERRITORIAL AREA (ATO): the Optimal Territorial Area (Law 36794) determines the regional level of the organisation of the Integrated Water Service; the Regional Law defines its boundaries.
P
PAI: Integrated Environmental Centre.
POWER EXCHANGE: virtual place where supply and demand meet for the purchase and sale of wholesale electricity. The economic management of the Power Exchange is entrusted to the GME (Article 5 of Italian Legislative Decree 79/99).
PPE: Personal Protective Equipment.
PPS: Prevention and Protection Service.
PRODUCTION CAPACITY: estimated energy that can be produced by each individual producer.
R
RAD: Risk Assessment Document
RENEWABLE ENERGY: energy sources not subject to depletion (sun, wind, water resources, geothermal resources, tides, wave motion and biomass).
RENEWABLE SOURCES: non-fossil sources (wind, solar, geothermal, wave motion, tidal power, hydraulics, biomass, landfill gas, residual gas from treatment and biogas processes) pursuant to Article 2 of the RES Decree.
REVAMPING: renovation of obsolete industrial plants.
RSPP: Prevention and Protection Service Officer.
RSU: Unitary Union Representative Body
S
SDGs: Sustainable Development Goals – are a set of 17 goals, to be achieved by 2030, defined by the United Nations Organization.
SECONDARY SOLID FUEL (SSF): fuel derived from non-hazardous waste.
SERVICE CHARTER: a document setting out the quality standards for company services.
SM3: standard cubic meter.
SMART METERING: systems enabling remote reading and management of electricity, gas and water meters.
SOCIAL COOPERATIVES: enterprises (Law 381/91) which have the aim of “pursuing the general interest of the community for human promotion and social integration of residents” through the management of services and the carrying out of activities aimed at the employment of disadvantaged people.
SOFT SKILLS: cognitive, interpersonal and communication skills, which differ from the technical skills and abilities related to specific roles.
SST: the term SST (Solidi Sospesi Totali – Total Suspended Solids) means the sum of suspended solids and filterable solids. It represents the total substances present in a wastewater sample after drying at 105°C. The value is expressed in %.
STAKEHOLDERS: parties who interact with the company and can influence or be influenced by the company’s activities.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: long-term economic development through low environmental impact and good relations with the social community.
T
TERAWATT-HOUR (TWh): one billion kilowatt-hours.
TERNA: operator that manages the networks for the national electricity.
THERMOELECTRIC: plant for the production of electrical energy from fossil fuels.
TOE (tonnes of oil equivalent): equivalent to the primary fossil energy replaced, i.e. the amount of fuel otherwise needed to produce the same amount of energy.
TOTAL POWER: sum of the electrical or thermal power. of the various producers installed at the same plant.
U
UNI EN ISO 9001: international technical standard for the certification of quality management systems.
UNI EN ISO 14001: international technical standard for the certification of environmental management systems.
UNI EN ISO 45001: international technical standard for the certification of occupational health and safety management systems.
V
VOLT: unit of measurement of electrical voltage.
W
WATT: unit of measurement of electrical power.