The call Thermal 3.0 Count It has become one of the most discussed instruments of Italian energy policy and a benchmark for other European countries seeking effective ways to promote energy-efficient building renovations. In just a few weeks, requests for assistance have far exceeded the allocated funds, forcing the public operator to activate a precautionary suspension of the system.
Behind this overwhelming interest lies a combination of factors: high budgetsThe possibility of achieving up to 100% coverage for certain small municipalities and the pressure of volatile energy costs that are pushing public administrations and companies to reduce consumption as soon as possible. All of this makes Conto Termico 3.0 a relevant case study for the debate on the energy transition in Europeespecially in countries like Spain, where agile aid schemes are sought to complement traditional tax deductions.
What is Thermal Cont 3.0 and why has demand skyrocketed?
The Thermal Counter 3.0 is a non-refundable incentive managed by the Gestore dei Servizi Energetici (GSE)The Italian public operator in charge of policies supporting renewable energy and efficiency. Unlike typical multi-year tax deductions, this involves... direct payments to the beneficiary in relatively short periods, which provides quick liquidity to those undertaking the works.
The mechanism finances small and medium-scale interventions aimed at reducing energy consumption in buildings and increasing the production of renewable thermal energy. This includes everything from electric heat pumps to biomass boilers, solar thermal systems, or, in certain cases, photovoltaic installations with storage linked to the conversion of heating and cooling systems. The aid can reach up to 65% of the eligible investment and, in the case of public buildings in municipalities with fewer than 15.000 inhabitants, educational centers or hospitals, even reach 100%.
Version 3.0 of the scheme, regulated by a decree of August 7, 2025, introduces updated criteriaIt expands the range of supported technologies (such as next-generation heat pumps or hybrid systems) and strengthens the role of energy service companies (ESCOs) as technical partners for public administrations and businesses. The annual fund amounts to 900 millones de euros, divided between 500 million for the private sector and 400 million for public administrations.
Demand has been so intense that, between the opening of the window at the beginning of February and the preventive closure on March 3, [number of] applications were recorded. applications for around 1.300 billion eurosThat is, well above the planned spending ceiling. A substantial portion of these requests comes from small municipalities that have seen this mechanism as a nearly unique opportunity to modernize their building stock using national funds.
A tool designed to renovate buildings and cut bills
In essence, Conto Termico 3.0 aims to tackle head-on one of the major challenges facing European countries: a aging and very energy-intensive housing stockPublic and private buildings constructed to outdated standards carry high bills and leave their owners highly vulnerable to any fluctuations in gas or oil prices, something especially visible during periods of geopolitical crisis.
To reduce this vulnerability, the scheme focuses resources on specific actions for saving and technological replacementIn the case of public administrations, the range is broad: improved thermal insulation (facades, roofs), renovation of windows and doors, comprehensive modernization of boiler rooms, installation of heat pumps, and deployment of renewable energy solutions. The incentive is greater when the following are undertaken: combined measure packages, rewarding those who approach rehabilitation in a comprehensive way.
In the private sphere the rule changes: homeowners These funds can be used primarily to replace heating equipment with more efficient or renewable energy sources, such as heat pumps, biomass boilers, or solar thermal systems. In contrast, purely structural work on the building envelope (roofs, windows, roofs) is mainly reserved for commercial buildings, such as offices, studios, or retail spaces.
This differentiation, which may seem counterintuitive from the perspective of other EU countries, reflects a desire to concentrate budgetary efforts on those types of buildings where the potential for energy savings and emissions reduction per euro invested is higher, and this scheme can be combined with other fiscal or regional programs aimed at housing.
The role of ESCOs and specialized operators This is another relevant element. These companies are responsible for designing projects, calculating savings, processing applications, and, in many cases, advancing the investment in exchange for recovering it with future savings, something that is already being seen in projects financed with European funds in Spain and other member states.
Budget, temporary suspension and possible reopening
The overall equipment of the Thermal Conto 3.0 is located in 900 million euros per yearThis figure, on paper, should guarantee a stable flow of projects for several years. However, the combination of favorable conditions for small municipalities—with coverage of up to 100%—and the parallel tightening of other national incentives (such as the various bonds for rehabilitation and earthquake-resistant reinforcement) has driven interest far beyond initial expectations.
According to data released by the manager himself, in just one month, [number] cases have been registered more than 2.000 requests of local administrations with fewer than 15.000 inhabitants, which represent approximately 85% of the total volume requestedAt the same time, projects have been submitted by companies and third-sector organizations, along with individuals seeking to upgrade their heating systems. The total amount of these requests is around €1.300 billion, which prompted the GSE to temporarily close the processing portal in early March to avoid irreversible overcommitment.
During this break, the GSE technical services have focused on reviewing the eligibility of applicationsThe process involves verifying that all projects comply with the decree's regulations and assessing the actual financial impact of the aid—not only in 2026, but also in subsequent years, given that some incentives are paid out over several years. The agency itself has indicated that a portion of the applications may not have an immediate budgetary impact, thus allowing for the acceptance of new applications.
Statements from the manager's leadership point to a Reopening of the portal around April 13, 2026This applies to individuals, public administrations, and businesses. Everything indicates that the return will be, at least in the first phase, exclusively in the form of... direct accessThat is, only for actions that have already been completed and fully justified, leaving in the background the advance reservations of funds for works yet to begin.
This approach seeks to prioritize mature and executable projectsThis prevents the budget from being tied up by projects that take a long time to materialize into actual work on the ground. Experience with previous aid programs in Italy and other EU countries, where large sums of money remained frozen for years, has led authorities to favor more selective mechanisms based on verifiable results.
Who can benefit and what requirements are needed?
The design of the Thermal Conto 3.0 clearly distinguishes between public and private subjectsas well as between residential and tertiary uses. They can submit individual applications.Companies, third sector entities and public administrations, provided they have the property available and meet the technical conditions.
In the private sphere, the responsible party This could be the owner, a usufructuary, or even a tenant with express authorization. The determining factor is proving legitimacy over the building or unit where the work is being carried out. In the case of businesses and professionals, work is permitted both in workplaces and in other properties used for economic purposes, always within the categories defined by the regulations.
For management, the range includes municipalities, regions, public bodies and entities managing essential servicesWith special attention to small municipalities that struggle to cope with rising energy bills. In these cases, the possibility of covering 100% of the cost of energy rehabilitation projects in town halls, schools, or hospitals has led many local councils to take out loans or advance funds, relying on repayment of the Conto Termico (Energy Contribution Fund).
Regardless of who requests the aid, the key technical requirement is the existence of a pre-existing and operational winter air conditioning system At the time of the intervention, duly registered in the regional registers when required by regulations. The aid focuses on the replacement or improvement of existing equipment, not in extensions on buildings without previous installations or in new construction.
The accreditation of that pre-existing system is carried out through photographic documentation and technical certificates, which necessitates careful planning of evidence collection before dismantling old boilers or equipment. The lack of these documents, or failure to meet deadlines, can result in a project being excluded from funding despite having met the planned energy targets.
Procedure, controls and role of the online portal
Access to Conto Termico 3.0 is processed entirely through an online platform, the so-called GSE Thermal PortalFor private beneficiaries, the timeline is very strict: the application must be submitted within 90 days of the project's completion, uploading both the installation data and the required technical and administrative documentation to the system. After this deadline, the application is automatically considered inadmissible.
Public administrations and some third-sector entities also have the option of reserve funds in advanceThis is especially true for larger projects or those linked to national recovery and resilience plans. However, this formula has been identified by industry associations and the manager himself as a potential source of rigidity if overused, as it can tie up resources for extended periods without guaranteeing rapid implementation.
The procedure includes several internal phases: document verification, technical assessment of the project's consistency with the program's objectives, and analysis of its multi-year economic impactDepending on the amount of aid, payment is made in a single installment —for moderate amounts— or spread over several years up to a maximum set by the regulations, allowing the manager to distribute the budgetary burden over time.
Alongside the role of the GSE, business associations in the energy efficiency sector advocate for a reform of the reserve system to prioritize qualified operators and projects ready to be implementedThe stated objective is to ensure that every public euro translates into real savings and emissions reductions, and is not lost in endless procedures or initiatives that never get off the ground.
At the same time, the importance of maintaining a stable and predictable regulatory framework is emphasized so that companies and administrations can plan investments several years in advance, something that has also been demanded in Spain and other neighboring countries in relation to programs co-financed by the European Union.
A benchmark case for the energy transition in Europe
The Conto Termico's journey in its different versions clearly illustrates the difficulties of starting up ambitious aid instruments and, at the same time, operationally simple. In its previous stage, a large part of the authorized budget was underutilized due to a combination of bureaucratic barriers, coexistence with other more attractive incentives, and reference prices that were outdated compared to the actual cost of the works.
The jump to version 3.0, with higher coverage percentagesClearer rules and a greater role for thermal renewables have partially corrected these problems, but have created a new one: a sharp concentration of demand over a very short period. This situation has forced the public manager to find a balance between two opposing risks: blocking access due to a lack of funds or dispersing resources across projects of questionable viability.
For countries like Spain, which has implemented its own European-funded programs for energy renovation and energy communities, the Italian experience offers several lessons: the importance of align incentives with actual execution capacity from the business sector and local administrations, the need to simplify procedures without reducing basic controls, and the value of involving specialized actors to support small municipalities.
In practice, Conto Termico 3.0 is accelerating very specific interventions: schools finally renewing their heating systems, hospitals switching to high-efficiency heat pumps, and small municipalities reducing their lighting and heating bills for administrative buildings. These results have a direct impact on the energy security and in local budgets, by freeing up resources that can be allocated to other public services.
With the planned reopening of the portal and the adjustment of its internal mechanisms, the program now faces a decisive phase: demonstrating that it is capable of maintaining a stable pace of projects without being periodically overwhelmed by avalanches of applications, and consolidating itself as another piece of the mosaic of European tools to move towards a more efficient housing stock, less dependent on fossil fuels and better prepared for the ups and downs of the energy market.
Everything suggests that the Thermal Contribution 3.0 will remain at the center of the debate on efficiency and renewable energy policies, as an example of how a well-designed direct aid scheme can attract massive demand and, at the same time, force adjustments to rules and procedures so that public money reaches precisely where it is most needed and quickly translates into less consumption, fewer emissions, and buildings better prepared for Europe's energy future.