The overcrowded electricity network is the bottleneck for the energy transition, says Energie-Nederland in a response to the Budget Memorandum. According to the industry association, a clear plan for the required grid reinforcement and expansion of the power grid has been lacking for quite some time.
"The energy sector wants to make progress but lacks the focus on feasible implementation plans that quickly reduce manyCO2 emissions. The 2030 climate goals are just around the corner, speed is desperately needed. So speed up permit procedures, make infrastructures heavier (electricity grids, hydrogen,CO2 storage), make smart use of existing electricity grids, abolish the balancing regime, speed up gas extraction in the North Sea and set a concrete goal for electrification in industry. Ensure that laws are written and enacted so that infrastructure is built quickly." That is the most important message from the energy industry for The Hague.
Chairman Cora van Nieuwenhuizen: "Ministries don't build wind farms, companies do. But it must be attractive for parties to invest in sustainability. Speed and concrete implementation are necessary to be able to achieve the goals."
'Radical revision'
"The situation requires unorthodox measures, such as a radical overhaul of procedures and licensing processes and the creation of a crisis team with a mandate to implement the attack plan. At the same time, the existing grid infrastructure must be utilized as smartly as possible and its management done more intelligently," the industry association said.
Energie-Nederland also wants more work to be done on hydrogen as a source of energy. According to the organization, the national government must make funds available for this and come up with concrete plans for implementation. "The government must provide clarity on the planning and scope of tenders, including locations, the necessary permits and connections to electricity and hydrogen infrastructure. The government must take the lead and break the chicken-and-egg impasse."
Furthermore, Energie-Nederland advocates accelerating gas extraction in the North Sea and setting a concrete goal for electrification in industry.
The organization does not like the cabinet's plan to impose double taxation on electricity. This is a tax on the gas that goes into a gas plant, but also on the electricity that goes out of the plant. "This double tax will have unintended effects: Dutch gas power plants will be disadvantaged this way compared to, often less sustainable, power plants abroad. That does not benefit the climate at all."
Major theme
In the run-up to the Lower House elections on November 22, Netbeheer Nederland is also calling for a national implementation plan for the construction of the necessary energy infrastructure. "It is special that King Willem-Alexander mentions the challenges of the power grid in the speech from the throne, and at the same time it is very logical," Dick Weiffenbach, general director of Netbeheer Nederland, says. "It is one of the big themes from a social point of view, alongside poverty and housing. Systematically increasing the capacity of the power grid and encouraging flexible use of power are the solutions to the problems we are now facing."
