Watts to ADD

Guusje Huybregts: Welcome to a new episode of What’s to ADD. In the previous episode, we concluded that there is no universal solution. So in this episode, we will discuss whether grid congestion will ever go away. Yes. How did we end up with a grid that is at full capacity?

Dirk-Jan Houben: Without pointing fingers? Because I think that’s really the policy here. While they saw us coming and waited far too long to respond, we in the Netherlands are simply dealing with two things that come together. We are extremely densely populated, even compared to other countries, and we are dealing with a country that takes electrical unification very seriously and is pushing ahead with it very aggressively. That combination has caused the demand for energy on the grid to increase very rapidly in recent years. And that has caused grid congestion.

G: And is there really too little investment in the uh.

DJ: And anyway, yes, I think the crux of the matter is: what are you going to invest in? I think that continuing with what we are doing now is simply not a solution. So pumping a lot of money into it now in the hope that you can still install those thousands of intermediate stations somewhere in the Netherlands. That seems utopian to me. That seems undesirable to me. So yes, we really need to start thinking creatively about how we are going to achieve this in the long term.

G: And how is the government dealing with this?

DJ: I have noticed that local authorities are really working on this. The large regional authorities certainly have people working full time on finding a solution. What can we do in the short term, but also what is a long-term solution? I also have the impression that the national civil service is working on this, but I do think that the fact that our cabinets regularly fall and we have short terms of office does not contribute to finding a long-term solution.

G: So, actually, it’s not enough.

DJ: No, it’s not enough anyway, because if it were enough, we wouldn’t have congestion at the moment.

G: And do you think there are new technologies in the pipeline that could offer an alternative to this?

DJ: Yes, I think so. I think that’s also where I’m noticing that things are much better now. You will have to generate your energy in a much more decentralized way. Unlike what we’re doing now. You see solar parks facilitating smaller substations at the neighborhood or village level, so it no longer has to go through the entire grid. You already see a lot of innovation there. And I expect that those are also the opportunities for the solutions that will ultimately prevail, and that we will see many more innovations there in the coming years.

G: Will it then come to a point where we return to the situation where you can simply request electricity?

DJ: I think so in the very long term, but I don’t think we should take that into account in the short term. It’s just not going to happen.

G: Yes, is congestion actually the biggest problem in this energy transition right now?

DJ: Yes, absolutely. No. The energy transition? Yes, because there are simply companies that are currently unable to merge electronically. There are simply companies that are unable to move to more sustainable premises because the energy transition is currently preventing that. Yes, absolutely.

G: And what does this mean for cities in the long term, for example for Amsterdam?

DJ: In the longer term, it means that we will lose companies and we will lose industry. And so, if we are not careful, we could lose economic growth and perhaps even prosperity.

G: Do you think that we as a society will have to get used to energy scarcity?

DJ: We must not get used to it, because getting used to it would mean that we are content with it. And that cannot and should not be the solution. We must be creative and ensure that we improve things, that we move forward. No matter how complicated and painful those choices may be.

G: What would you change if you were the Minister of Energy?

DJ: Great! In any case, I would ensure that in a crisis situation, and I now recognize that this is the case, you limit outside influence, however undemocratic that may sound. But the public interest really does outweigh the private interest of someone who doesn’t want a transformation happening on their doorstep. And I think I would go big on decentralized energy generation. That’s really the only way to solve this, not in the short term, but let’s say in the medium term.

G: If this is the new normal, how do we prepare ourselves for it?

DJ: It means that we will have to learn to live with the NIMBY (not in my backyard) mentality, that it’s over. That you have no influence. Because it’s simply taking away. Because it’s more important for society. And mind you, this is not new. This has happened before with large social projects that were important for progress. That’s over now, and it does indeed mean that you will see visual pollution for some people, which we will just have to learn to live with because the alternative is that it will cost us electricity and therefore prosperity. Yes.

G: Well, that’s super interesting. Let’s just say that was the last question from UH for this season.

DJ: Yes, exactly. Great!

G: Thank you very much for listening, in any case. I found it extremely interesting, and we hope you learned something from it.

DJ: Thank you for listening. And me? I hope I have contributed something to the creative solutions for the future.

G: Thank you!

DJ: Thank you too! Great!