Dijsselbloem: TenneT sale presents an opportunity for innovation
Dijsselbloem, Mayor of Eindhoven, and FME Chairman Theo Henrar want the sale of TenneT shares to be used as start-up capital for innovation.
Published on March 16, 2026
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The Netherlands is selling its shares in the German arm of grid operator TenneT. The government must decide what to do with the billions raised from the sale. There are calls from the tech sector and the political arena to establish a National Investment Institution (NII): a state-owned bank designed to prevent Dutch technology from being taken abroad.
TenneT’s billions
In September 2025, 46% of the shares were sold to private investors for up to €9.5 billion. In 2026, 25.1% will be sold to the German state via the investment bank KfW, worth approximately €3.3 billion.
The Mayor of Eindhoven, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, and FME Chairman Theo Henrar are calling for the remaining sum to be used as start-up capital for a NII. Dijsselbloem states in an article in De Telegraaf that the sale could yield “several tens of billions”. With a minimum of €10 billion in equity, financial leverage could create more than €100 billion in investment capacity.
Why existing funds are not enough
The Netherlands has innovation funds, but they lack scale. The National Growth Fund invests over €11 billion in projects, but mainly offers grants and little venture capital.
The financing and development institution Invest-NL helps entrepreneurs but, with just over €1 billion, lacks the clout for large-scale industrial projects. According to Henrar in De Telegraaf, examples such as Germany’s KfW and France’s BPI are far more powerful.
Technology companies leaving the country
Many Dutch deep-tech companies – for example, in photonics, artificial intelligence and defence technology – require substantial investment to scale up. A pilot plant for photonic chips, for instance, can cost as much as €150 million. Such capital is often hard to come by in Europe. As a result, companies are relocating to countries where investors do have billions at their disposal, such as the US or Asia. This leads to a loss of revenue and control over strategic technology.
Independent state bank
According to Henrar, for the NII to be successful, it must operate politically independently, following the example of KfW and BPI. Politicians determine the mission, but must not interfere with individual investments. Supervision by De Nederlandsche Bank must therefore guarantee stability.
Criticism
According to the Institute for Public Economics, it must first be clear which market failure the bank is addressing. Investments must not compete with the financing already provided by the market. The NII should therefore only invest in projects with a strong business case and a market-rate return, for example in the energy transition, circular chemistry and defence.