Grid operators TenneT and Liander understand all too well the frustration caused by the overloaded electricity grid – which means that businesses applying for a new or higher-capacity connection end up on a waiting list. They are fed up with it themselves. To tackle this challenge, several measures are now being implemented, according to Maarja Meitern of TenneT and Geert-Jan Koning of Liander. One of these measures is the development of smart energy hubs.
In a smooth collaboration, Maarja Meitern (business adviser at TenneT and responsible for the smart energy hubs initiative) and Geert-Jan Koning (energy transition adviser at Liander) give the interview. “We believe it is important to tell this story together,” says Meitern. “We want to provide greater clarity to the market.”
Bale of the situation
TenneT operates the national high-voltage grid, whilst Liander operates the regional medium-voltage grid, to which the vast majority of businesses are connected. Both grids are now at full capacity, including in the Lifeport region. Koning: “The electricity grids of southern Flevoland, Gelderland and Utrecht are closely interconnected and have been facing both ‘TenneT congestion’ and ‘Liander congestion’ since 2022.”
The two grid operators find it hard to accept that they often have to turn customers away. Meitern: “We want to be able to connect customers, which is why we’re fed up with the situation that has arisen. Developments such as the war in Ukraine, the more ambitious climate targets and the speed with which households and businesses are subsequently switching from natural gas to electricity have taken us by surprise. We are facing an enormous challenge.” Koning: “There is a great sense of urgency in the market. It is difficult for us to keep up with that pace, however much we would like to. The major challenge is to make as much grid capacity as possible available to businesses, whilst keeping the risks under control and ensuring we remain a reliable supplier for all our customers.” 
Geert-Jan Koning, Liander
Contract forms in the pipeline
Meitern describes the grid operators’ approach as a two-pronged policy. “We are doing everything we can to expand the grid, whilst also working on smart solutions to make better use of the electricity grid, such as smart energy hubs.”
The network operators see great potential in these smart energy hubs, where businesses – for example, on an industrial estate – coordinate the production and use of energy locally. Koning: “At the end of 2022, the National Action Programme on Grid Congestion was published, which discussed smart energy hubs. As grid operators, we have been working on this. We have improved our organisation in relation to customers, contract models have been developed, and there is much greater data exchange. A knowledge platform has also been set up.”
It was agreed with the overarching Energy Board – a collaboration between provinces, energy regions and network operators – to run four pilot schemes in Gelderland and Flevoland, including InnoFase in Duiven. Koning: “We’re pleased with the pilot schemes, whilst at the same time realising that, together with the participating companies, it’s a process of trial and error.” Meitern: “These pilot schemes are giving us important insights into the impact on our shared grids. We’ve also agreed on key frameworks for collaboration.”
Before smart energy hubs can spring up like mushrooms, a great deal needs to be done, particularly from a legal perspective. A so-called ‘Draft Code Decision on Group Transmission Agreements’ is now on the table. The next step is a final code decision. This will ultimately enable large-scale group contracts, with the major advantage that businesses can make more efficient use of grid capacity through joint coordination. Meitern: “These legal arrangements make things more difficult for businesses than they are currently used to, but they are necessary if you are going to share energy.” 
Maarja Meitern, TenneT
More than grid congestion
Smart energy hubs play a greater role than simply helping to resolve grid congestion, as both parties wish to make clear. Koning: “The main aim is to use the grid more efficiently, ensuring that the investments we make as grid operators on behalf of society are utilised to the full. Fortunately, this is becoming an increasingly common topic of discussion. After all, it is important that the hubs remain relevant in the future and do not fall apart once the congestion has been resolved. Everyone connected to an energy hub must be able to recoup their investments, both by working together and by contracting more intelligently in line with actual energy demand.”
He believes the latter is a key point. “You only want to be billed for your peak load during the times when you actually have such a peak. That’s what we’re aiming for, with the right types of contracts. In other words, more customisation. This offers many benefits for both consumers and society.” Meitern: “As a group of businesses, you can make certain agreements about how you use the grid and how you can align each other’s electricity consumption profiles. At what time do you switch on all your equipment or charge your electric vehicles? There are all sorts of ways to work together to create a kind of balancing effect. That’s really necessary, because we can’t keep upgrading the grid just to cope with peak demand. That’s very inefficient and unaffordable. We all pay for the electricity grid together.”
Working on solutions
These developments mean that network operators are collaborating much more than they used to. Koning: “In the past, entrepreneurs would apply for a connection, a contract would be signed, and we would ensure they were connected to the grid straight away. Now, entrepreneurs who want to do something new have to get in touch with us, and this leads to collaborations. It’s not always a one-size-fits-all approach, but sometimes the processes are quite intensive. This is certainly the case with smart energy hubs.”
TenneT and Liander also work well together. Koning: “We have learnt in recent years that we need to work together when organising smart energy hubs, because otherwise we’ll simply shift the problem from our regional grid to TenneT’s national substations. Although we have different responsibilities, we both recognise the importance of what we’re currently working on. We see eye to eye on that.”
News
Shortly after the interview took place, it emerged that TenneT’s expansion plans had hit a snag. As reported in this article, large-scale electricity consumers and the major producers of wind and solar power in the Utrecht, Gelderland and Flevopolder regions will have to wait longer for a new or higher-capacity connection. TenneT has stated that this will not affect its ambitions regarding smart energy hubs, as discussed in the interview.
