If the four major right-wing parties form a joint coalition, the energy transition may be delayed. Network operator Tennet, the state-owned company that manages the national high voltage grid, warns about this.
“I’m worried, I’m afraid we’re losing momentum,” says Manon van Beek, president at Nieuwsuur. “We are moving towards a CO2-free future, and uncertainty and zigzag policies will not help then.”
“All measures go through the document shredder”
The election winner PVV wants almost all climate policies eliminated. “All climate measures will immediately be put through the document shredder,” the election manifesto says. This may be difficult as the Netherlands is bound by international agreements on CO2 reduction. A new government could decide to significantly cut the €35 billion climate fund.
Coalition partners BBB and NSC also criticize current climate policy but fully support the Paris Climate Agreement. “The Netherlands must make every effort to achieve these goals, but we do so with common sense,” the BBB writes. The question is whether the VVD will take part in the new cabinet, but this party also wants to continue its climate policy.
Therefore, the real question is what kind of compromise the right-wing coalition will reach. Van Beek warns that if the new cabinet puts the brakes on, this could lead to very serious consequences. Wind turbine manufacturers want “100% clarity for about a decade” on plans for new wind farms. “Otherwise they would go to the US, for example, and then you would have problems.”
Without these additional wind farms, part of Dutch industry would not be more sustainable. Due in part to high gas prices as a result of the war in Ukraine, many companies are now switching to electricity as an energy source.
Overloaded electrical grid
The power grid is now overloaded in more and more places. Space requirements in the electrical grid are increasing faster than new connections can be created. There are 6 thousand 600 companies on the waiting list for electricity purchase.
This overload is also a result of the increase in solar and wind energy. For example, during sunny moments there is more electricity than the grid can handle. But according to Van Beek, the solution is not to invest less in green energy. “We must improve the electrical infrastructure.” Tennet will therefore invest 4 billion euros this year, 6 billion euros next year and 8 billion euros a year from 2025.
In October, Minister for Climate and Energy Rob Jetten (D66) announced additional measures. He’s considering requiring companies to buy less electricity during peak times. And he wants permits to be issued faster, for example for the construction of new power cables. Van Beek calls this “promising” and advocates for this momentum to continue.
The Tennet CEO also calls for more attention to be paid to people “who have such high voltage poles in their backyards.” He said the government needed to explain to people “on a budget” why their energy bills were often high and take action to address the problem. “It’s incredibly important that we make everyone’s homes in the Netherlands more sustainable and insulated.”
A right-wing cabinet looks likely but nothing is certain at the moment. Nieuwsuur examined what political parties were doing in terms of climate plans ahead of the elections:
Source: NOS
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
