Dutch grid operator TenneT says energy transition will double investments

Dutch grid operator TenneT says energy transition will double investments

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Dutch power grid operator TenneT said on Wednesday the energy transition and rapidly increasing demand for electricity will force it to double investments needed to expand capacity in the coming decade.

State-owned TenneT, which operates the Dutch high-voltage grid and part of the German grid, said it expected to complete around 700 large infrastructure projects in the Netherlands between 2024 and 2033.

That is twice the amount the company projected in its previous investment plan issued last year.

TenneT said that despite these projects it will not be able to meet all the demand for extra capacity.

“With the rapid electrification of our society, we need to drastically overhaul our whole energy system,” TenneT director Maarten Abbenhuis said.

“Not everything can happen at once and we will need to make difficult choices.”

TenneT said it would focus first on maintaining and replacing the existing grid, to make sure it is reliable.

The Dutch government last month said it was working on plans to regulate peak demand from heavy users and to fast-track investments in the grid by easing permitting procedures.

The government has said it is only interested in investing in the Dutch grid and is still in talks with the German government about the sale of TenneT’s German operations.

(Reporting by Bart Meijer; editing by Jason Neely and David Evans)