TenneT invests €14.8 billion in power grid, but also delays

High-voltage grid operator TenneT has invested more in expanding the electricity grid over the past year. In total, TenneT invested more than €14.8 billion in the power grid in the Netherlands and Germany, of which €4.9 billion was invested in the Netherlands. However, the grid operator warns that the expansion of the grid may be delayed.

43 billion

The grid operator wants to invest €43 billion in the grid infrastructure in the Netherlands on land and at sea by 2029. According to TenneT, the expansion will proceed more quickly thanks to a package of measures presented last year to speed up the expansion of the high-voltage grid. The company says that package could cut the lead time for projects by about half.

Behind schedule

Approximately 60 percent of Dutch projects on the mainland are on average 2.5 years behind schedule. According to the high-voltage grid operator, this is mainly due to lengthy licensing procedures, complex location choices, and land acquisition.

Projects ahead of schedule

Despite the bottlenecks, the high-voltage grid operator was also able to complete projects ahead of schedule last year. The Hollandse Kust (west Beta) wind farm in the North Sea was completed five months ahead of schedule. TenneT also completed two major grid reinforcements in Zeeland, an underground connection between Goes and Westdorpe and an above-ground connection between Borssele and Rilland.

TenneT in Germany

TenneT also discussed developments at TenneT Germany. In September, it was announced that three private investors would be investing a maximum of €9.5 billion in the company. Last month, TenneT also announced that the German government would be investing €3.3 billion in the German branch through the state bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau. TenneT expects both transactions to be completed by the end of the first half of this year.