Dutch network operators draw up grid-focused national action plan

The Dutch network operators have drawn up a national action plan, the landelijk actieprogramma (National Network Congestion Action Program), with the aim of speeding up grid investments and opening up space on the power network.

Under the leadership of special coordinator, Ben Voorhorst, national and regional governments, network operators, Authority for Consumers and Markets and market parties presented the action programme, which aims to upgrade the electricity grid more quickly, stimulate smarter use of the grid with new regulations and encourage more flexible energy consumption.

Upgrading the grid

According to the plan, grid expansion remains the top priority.

The network operators currently invest €3.9 billion ($4.2 billion) annually in the electricity network.

The lead time to expand the power grid can be reduced by several years if network operators, governments and market parties better coordinate their plans and complete procedures in parallel and faster.

Thus, under the plan, each province will provide administrative coordination, for example in the form of an energy board where governments, network operators and industry clusters bundle projects per area and approach them integrally.

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This ensures that permit procedures can be completed more quickly.

Grid operators and market parties will involve each other in planned investments earlier in the process. In this way, the parties involved ensure that expansions of the power grid and the construction and sustainability plans are more closely aligned.

By deploying space on the grid flexibly and using the grid less at peak times, more parties can be connected.

Parties involved in the plans want to make ‘rush hour avoidance’ cheaper, introduce flexible contracts and make it possible to share a single connection for wind, solar and energy storage.

Energy storage will also have its own contract conditions, as storage can contribute to resolving grid congestion.

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Increase flexible capacity

As the Netherlands transitions to a sustainable energy system, it is becoming increasingly important to match energy consumption with local energy production.

Energy producers, industry associations, network operators and governments will help companies with technical support. Financial support is also being investigated.

Provinces and municipalities will start supporting energy hubs, which are local networks, for example on business parks, in which generation, heat, storage and consumption are coordinated. By using energy locally, the national power grid is less burdened.

On the plan, Dutch minister Rob Jetten for Climate and Energy stated: “With this action plan, we are taking important steps on several fronts to solve and prevent problems with the full power grid as much as possible. This is very important if we are to continue making our economy more sustainable at a rapid pace.”

The plan was launched by the country’s network operators, ACM (Authority for Consumers and Market), local authorities, market parties and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy.