![Double pylon 380 kV Tilburg NL 2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Double_pylon_380_kV_Tilburg_NL_2011.jpg)
The total electricity consumption of the Netherlands in 2021 was 117
terawatt-hour
A kilowatt-hour (unit symbol: kW⋅h or kW h; commonly written as kWh) is a unit of energy: one kilowatt of power for one hour. In terms of SI derived units with special names, it equals 3.6 megajoules (MJ). Kilowatt-hours are a common bil ...
s (TWh).
The consumption grew from 7 TWh in 1950 by an average of 4.5% per year.
As of 2021, the main resources for electricity in the Netherlands are
fossil fuel
A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of dead plants and animals that is extracted and burned as a fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels m ...
s, such as
natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
and
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when dea ...
. In 2021, fossil fuels accounted for about 62% of the produced electricity.
Renewable energy sources
Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...
, such as
biomass
Biomass is plant-based material used as a fuel for heat or electricity production. It can be in the form of wood, wood residues, energy crops, agricultural residues, and waste from industry, farms, and households. Some people use the terms bi ...
,
wind power
Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to electricity generation, generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable energy, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller Environmental impact of wi ...
, and
solar power
Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovoltaic e ...
, produce 38% of the total electricity.
There is one
nuclear plant
A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a generator that produces elec ...
in the Netherlands, in
Borssele
Borssele is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is a part of the municipality of Borsele, and lies about 12 km east of Vlissingen. Note that the municipality name is spelled with a single ''s'' while the name of the town is spelled ...
, which is responsible for about 3% of total generation. The majority of the electricity, more than 75%, is produced centrally by thermal and nuclear units.
From 2005 to 2008, the Netherlands imported 13–15% of its electricity. After 2008, however, the share of imported electricity went down drastically; in 2009, the Netherlands became a net exporter of electricity. Then, in 2011, the import balance increased again sharply.
This development continued in 2012 and 2013.
From 56.1 PJ in 2010 to almost twice the amount in 2015: 110.7 PJ. The cause of the increase in electricity imports has to do with the development of energy prices. The price of natural gas rose sharply in 2011 and 2012, while the price of coal rose again in 2011, but fell sharply in 2012 and 2013. Additionally, the supply of cheap electricity in neighbouring countries rose relatively strongly, which made imports more attractive.
Before 1998, utilities were allowed to own an electricity network and sell the electricity at the same time, which gave companies that owned the network unfair advantages over companies that were only active in the retail sale of electricity. This prompted a restructuring of the electricity sector in the Netherlands with the introduction of the Electricity Act in 1998.
This Act demanded the decoupling of utilities and electricity supply. The generation and retail of electricity in the Netherlands were liberalised. However, the transmission and distribution were and are still centralised and operated by the system operator and the utilities. The system operator and utilities have a monopoly position in the energy market. Therefore, to guarantee the rights of consumers and businesses in the electricity sector, these parties have to be regulated.
The Authority for Consumers and Markets was founded to this end in 2013.
The system operator,
TenneT
TenneT is a transmission system operator in the Netherlands and in a large part of Germany.
''TenneT B.V.'' is the national electricity transmission system operator of the Netherlands, headquartered in Arnhem. Controlled and owned by the Dutch g ...
, is the only stakeholder responsible for managing the high-voltage grid (between 110 kV to 380 kV) in the Netherlands.
There are seven utility companies owning the regional energy grids: Cogas Infra en Beheer, Enduris, Enexis,
Liander
Liander is a Dutch utility company which operates in the distribution of electricity and natural gas in part of the Netherlands. Liander NV is the largest utility company in the Netherlands, managing the energy network in the provinces of Gelderlan ...
, Stedin Netbeheer, and Westland Infra Netbeheer.
Electricity per person and by power source
![Electricity2019](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Electricity2019.png)
In 2008, the Netherlands consumed an average of 7,463 kWh per person, which was equal to the EU15 average of 7,409 kWh per person.
In 2014, this was 6,713 kWh per person, which is a decrease of 10% compared to 2008.
Coal-based power generation
The Netherlands has five coal-fired plants. Three new coal-fired plants were opened from 2015–2016, two in the Maasvlakte and one in the Eemshaven. At the same time three old plants were closed down in Nijmegen, Borssele and Geertruidenberg. Additionally, two other plants (Maasvlakte I and II) are planned to be closed before 1 July 2017. A discussion is taking place on what to do with the five operational coal-fired plants and whether they should be closed down or not. However, according to the government, the remaining five plants should stay open because the Netherlands depends on the energy produced by these coal-fired plants. The tables show an overview of the operational and recently closed/opened
coal-fired power plant
A coal-fired power station or coal power plant is a thermal power station which burns coal to generate electricity. Worldwide, there are about 8,500 coal-fired power stations totaling over 2,000 gigawatts capacity. They generate about a th ...
s in the Netherlands.
Operational
Closed
Use
According to the IEA, the electricity use (gross production + imports – exports – transmission/distribution losses) in the Netherlands in 2008 was 119 TWh. In 2014, the electricity use decreased to 113 TWh. The electricity generated by wind energy increased from 1990 to 2013 by an average of 19% per year to 2,713 MW. In 2013, wind energy generates 9% of the total electricity in the Netherlands, compared to 3.9% in 2009.
The wind capacity installed at the end of 2010 would, in a normal wind year, produce 4,1% of the total electricity, while the equivalent value for
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
is 9,4%,
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
14%, and
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
39% in 2014.
[Rasmussen, Jesper Nørskov.]
Vindmøller slog rekord i 2014
In English: New record for wind turbines in 2014
''Energinet.dk
Energinet is the Danish national transmission system operator for electricity and natural gas. It is an independent public enterprise owned by the Danish state under the Ministry of Climate and Energy. Energinet has some 1150 employees, a ...
'', 6 January 2015. Accessed: 6 January 2015
Archived
on 6 January 2015
The Netherlands has three connections with Germany and two with Belgium, both
alternating current
Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in whic ...
power lines.
Additionally, it has
direct current
Direct current (DC) is one-directional flow of electric charge. An electrochemical cell is a prime example of DC power. Direct current may flow through a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through semiconductors, insulators, or even ...
(
HVDC
A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system (also called a power superhighway or an electrical superhighway) uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating curren ...
)
submarine power cable
A submarine power cable is a transmission cable for carrying electric power below the surface of the water.[NorNed
NorNed is a long high-voltage direct current submarine power cable between Feda in Norway and the seaport of Eemshaven in the Netherlands, which interconnects both countries' electrical grids. It was once the longest submarine power cable in the ...]
cable since 2008), England (the 1,000 MW
BritNed
BritNed is a 1,000MW high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) submarine power cable between the Isle of Grain in Kent, the United Kingdom; and Maasvlakte in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
The BritNed interconnector would serve as a link for the foresee ...
cable since 2011),
and Denmark (the 700 MW
COBRAcable cable since 2019). Possibilities to connect wind farms to this cable are being looked into. In addition, a fourth connection with Germany is being realised.
A 24 MW / 48 MWh
grid battery will open in 2022.
Global warming
The total emissions of
carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...
per capita in 2007 were 11.1 tons. This compares to the EU27 average of 7.9 tons CO
2.
Emissions grew by 16.4% between 1990 and 2007. However, compared between 2002 and 2012, the emission per capita decreased by 6.1% to 10.4 tons of CO
2.
Additionally, the IEA showed that for a longer time period, from 1990 to 2012, there was a reduction in emissions of 8%, while GDP grew by around 50% in this same period.
Emissions per capita in the
OECD
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate e ...
countries exceeded the Netherlands only in the Czech Republic (11.8), Finland (12.2), Canada (17.4), Australia (18.8), the United States (19.1), and Luxembourg (22.4).
[Energy in Sweden 2010, Table 1: Emissions of carbon dioxide in total, per capita and per GDP in EU and OECD countries, 200]
2010 Table 1
Energy Agreement for Sustainable Growth
On 6 September 2013 representatives from the Dutch government, environmentalists, and the energy sector, representing 47 different parties, signed the Energy Agreement.
This agreement contains plans for investing in energy conservation and renewable energy generation. It is projected to deliver tens of thousands of new jobs, improve industry competitiveness, and increase exports.
Additionally, the stakeholders agreed that 16% of the energy would be generated by renewable energy sources in 2023.
Five coal-fired plants, which were built in the 1980s, would be closed in 2016 and 2017. The other remaining five coal-fired plants would remain open and be used for co-firing biomass, a 4 billion euro measure that would contribute 1.2% of the total production of renewable energy.
This agreement was seen as a major breakthrough in the debate about climate change in the Netherlands because it not only provided a clear set of policies for
sustainable growth
Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The desir ...
but was also supported by the main stakeholders.
Resistance Energy Agreement
However, not everybody supported the Energy Agreement. The foundation
Urgenda
Urgenda is a nonprofit foundation (stichting) in the Netherlands which aims to help enforce national, European and international environment treaties. In 2013, Urgenda filed a lawsuit against the state of the Netherlands – respectively also aga ...
, an environmental organisation, did not sign the agreement. According to Urgenda, the agreement is a weak compromise without any sense of urgency; therefore, they
sued the Dutch government on 20 November 2013. They accused the Dutch state of acting unlawfully by not contributing its proportional share to preventing global warming. The hearing of the case took place on 14 April 2015. Then, on 24 June 2015, the verdict came: Urgenda won the case. The Dutch government was required to take more effective climate action to reduce the Netherlands’ considerable share of global emissions. This was the first time that a judge had legally required a State to take precautions against climate change. Although many politicians asked for action instead of delaying the transition to a more sustainable society, the government appealed the verdict. The reason, according to the government, is that they questioned the way the court assessed their policy. They promised, however, that new measures to comply with the verdict would still be carried out. Urgenda described the appeal as a delaying tactic. Additionally, 28,000 citizens signed a petition urging the government to accept the verdict.
Debate about closure of coal-firing plants
Then, in October 2015, the National Energy Exploration showed that the measures set by the agreement would fail to reach the goals set by the Energy agreement. Many politicians lost confidence in the agreement and demanded an additional set of measures.
In December 2015, the majority of the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
supported the closure of all Dutch coal-firing plants in the near future. A policy contradiction was created: closing the additional coal-firing plants would simultaneously go against the Energy Agreement because it would make the co-firing of biomass impossible. Additionally, three new coal plants were just finished and cost 1.5 billion euros each.
However, the politicians suggested using the subsidies for co-firing biomass as compensation to close the new coal-firing plants. However, some politicians were against the plan because they were afraid that it would cost too many jobs.
Since the Urgenda motion, the Cabinet and other involved parties have been negotiating possible solutions.
Nuon, the Dutch subsidiary of the Swedish company
Vattenfall
Vattenfall is a Swedish multinational power company owned by the Swedish State. Beyond Sweden, the company generates power in Denmark, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.
The company's name is Swedish for "waterfall", and ...
, which owns the ''Hemwegcentrale'', stated that it was open to discussion about the closure of the plant.
Essent
Essent N.V. is a Dutch energy company based in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. It is a subsidiary of E.ON. It is a public limited liability corporation. Essent is the largest energy company in the country. Belgium is their second home market. Es ...
, the owner of ''Eemshavencentrale'', on the other hand, sought the confrontation; they believed that the closure of the plants would only work counterproductively in reaching the energy goals.
Henk Kamp
Henricus Gregorius Jozeph "Henk" Kamp (; born 23 July 1952) is a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) who served as List of Ministers of Defence of the Netherlands, Minister of Defence in the Third Rutte cabinet ...
, the Minister of Economic Affairs, promised that the Dutch government would make a decision by the autumn of 2016. This decision could lead to another large breakthrough in policies for the energy sector in the Netherlands.
In January 2016, as planned, the three oldest coal-firing plants were closed in
Nijmegen
Nijmegen (;; Spanish and it, Nimega. Nijmeegs: ''Nimwèège'' ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and tenth largest of the Netherlands as a whole, located on the Waal river close to the German border. It is about 6 ...
,
Borssele
Borssele is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is a part of the municipality of Borsele, and lies about 12 km east of Vlissingen. Note that the municipality name is spelled with a single ''s'' while the name of the town is spelled ...
and
Geertruidenberg
Geertruidenberg () is a city and municipality in the province North Brabant in the south of the Netherlands. The city, named after Saint Gertrude of Nivelles, received city rights in 1213 from the count of Holland. The fortified city prospered un ...
. Two more closures are scheduled for 1 July 2017: Maasvlakte I and II.
2017 Energy Agreement debate
At the end of January 2017, Minister Kamp sent a letter to the House of Representatives saying that no decision would be made by the incumbent government on the closure of the remaining five coal plants. Instead of a concrete plan, the minister sent a study to the House, which he had carried out by the German research agency Frontier Economics, as well as the final advice of the individual members of the advisory group with whom the minister had been constantly consulted on this matter. These include
VNO-NCW VNO-NCW (known in English as the "Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers") is a Dutch employers' federation founded in 1996 as a merger of the Christian-democratic ''Nederlands Christelijk Werkgeversverbond'' (NCW), which was founded as ...
, FNV, environmental organisations, and the VEMW. They did not agree on a common position, and hence the difficult issue of the coal-fired power stations would be passed over during the elections, which took place 15 March 2017.
2018 ban on coal-fired power plants
On 18 May 2018, Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy
Eric Wiebes
Eric Derk Wiebes (born 12 March 1963) is a resigned Dutch politician who served as Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy in the Third Rutte cabinet since 26 October 2017 until 15 January 2021. He is a member of the People's Party for ...
announced that the Netherlands would ban the use of coal in electricity generation by the end of 2029. Two of the five remaining coal-fired plants (Amercentrale Unit 9 & Hemweg 8) would have to shut down at the end of 2024 unless they switched primary fuels.
See also
*
Energy in the Netherlands
Energy in the Netherlands describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in the Netherlands. Electricity sector in the Netherlands is the main article of electricity in the Netherlands.
Overview
Transition away from nat ...
*
Renewable energy in the Netherlands
Despite the historic usage of wind power to drain water and grind grain, the Netherlands today lags behind all other member states of the European Union in the production of energy from renewable sources. In 2019, the Netherlands produced just 8. ...
References
External links
Report on the Dutch power system (PDF 1.64 MB), September 2014 Green energy suppliers report October 2017 *https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/0ac723e3-b89e-4bd6-b262-ee862493371a/NL-2020-Launch-Presentation.pdf
{{Europe topic , Electricity sector in