Dutch cabinet to play larger role in domestic energy transition

The Dutch government will play a bigger role in the country’s quest for climate neutrality by 2050, Climate and Energy Minister Rob Jetten (D66/Renew) stated during a press conference on Monday.

Jetten presented the new National Energy System Plan (NPE), which lays out how the country wants to be climate neutral by 2050.

“A climate-neutral society in 2050 requires a major overhaul of our energy system. This will make the Netherlands less dependent on foreign countries, our air cleaner and offer economic opportunities,” Jetten stated.

“A sustainable energy system requires a major transformation, sufficient space and also tight government direction and control,” he added.

Besides wind, solar and nuclear energy, Jetten emphasised that green hydrogen will play a “crucial [role] for industry, shipping and aviation”, with the country looking both to produce green hydrogen itself via wind energy and import it from third countries, such as Namibia.

The plan also foresees the facilitation of licensing to build energy infrastructure and storage facilities to increase the country’s resilience against potential shortages in certain energy sources and simplify their transport, including to other parts of Europe.

In order to simplify energy storage and transportation, the plan designated certain areas across the country where storage facilities and transport routes are to be constructed, including large-scale batteries and electrolysers. These areas mostly concern infrastructure which is or was being used to create or store energy created by fossil fuels, such as coal plants.

Jetten emphasised that the cabinet would play a larger role in the design of the energy transition than previously.

“The government will play a more prominent role […]. Perhaps we will move away from that at a later stage. But now that driving role is really needed,” he stated.

The NPE is the latest of several measures to wean the country off of fossil fuels, which have not always been met with open arms: back in May, business associations had slammed a proposed punitive tax on fossil fuels, just one month after the cabinet had been forced to announce a new spending programme to reach its goals under the EU’s Fit-for-55 programme.

(Benedikt Stöckl | EURACTIV.com)