Voltage drops and poor connection. 'So the lake is being penalised'

15 July 2025

Garda. "Voltage dips, sudden power cuts, telephones that don't pick up because the lines often fall down, connection sometimes absent, fibre optics still far from total coverage of our territory. It's a situation that the towns around the lake have to deal with,“ denounces the mayor of Garda, Davide Bendinelli, pointing out, however, that 'the situation is improving”.
This is also in the light of a meeting in the town hall with Enel's top management, to solve the energy supply problems. Two million in interventions by E-Distribuzione are planned.

The complaint
“In a tourist area like ours,” urges the mayor, 'which counts 11 million presences in a year, we can no longer allow problems of this kind. The first issue concerns the supply of electricity, which in recent years, partly due to the excessive heat, has led to a massive use of air conditioning, and has caused disruptions in both homes and accommodation facilities with great inconvenience for tourists and residents alike". Therefore, he said, 'a meeting was held in Garda with the regional and provincial heads of Enel. We talked about investments and works that Enel has planned to definitively solve the problems related to such voltage drops. The meeting was fruitful: Enel's intervention is underway, and the first works are concerning the rebuilding of the underground lines,' Bendinelli informs. "The significant investment will ensure a more modern, safe and efficient network, with benefits for citizens, businesses and tourism. We will continue to follow every step of this process closely. We have been assured that the work will be completed in 2026.

Enel's projects
The meeting with Bendinelli, says Enel, 'took place in an atmosphere of mutual cooperation. E-Distribuzione, after analysing the situation, confirmed excellent standards of electrical service ensured to citizens and tourist and business activities". With respect to the episodes that affected Garda, which were in any case defined as circumscribed, Enel continued: "A monitoring campaign will be activated to identify the possible need for specific interventions on the network to avoid, as far as possible, future inefficiencies. With the aim of further improving the quality of service, E-Distribuzione has also planned the construction of new infrastructure and an investment in advanced remote control of electrical systems for a total of two million".

The knots
But two other knots remain to be unravelled. "The first concerns the optical fibre, which to date does not cover an important part of the territory. Companies commissioned by the Ministry,‘ says Bendinelli, ’have laid the fibre by digging in the central areas and covering the holes with asphalt even though there was porphyry. The municipality had to intervene with its own resources to solve the problem, at least from an aesthetic point of view. And the optical fibre remains a raw nerve'. The second node concerns the line. 'The telephone on Lake Garda often doesn't pick up, the internet connection is slow if not absent. In some areas it is often difficult to send emails or answer the phone'. Finally, the mayor launches an appeal to the telecommunications companies: 'Fix the antennas and allow total coverage of the territory. Garda and the Garda area have a right to this in 2025'.


Article from the Arena of 11 July