Grid congestion
The Dutch electricity grid is reaching its limits. Businesses, project developers and public authorities are increasingly facing a shortage of transmission capacity. Grid congestion therefore poses a direct threat to the progress of the energy transition and the expansion of business activities. Our Energy sector team advises on the legal options available for moving forward despite a congested grid.
What is grid congestion?
Grid congestion occurs when the demand for electricity transmission exceeds the capacity of the grid. This applies to both the demand side (consumption) and the supply side (generation of renewable energy). The result is that network operators refuse new connections or that existing connections cannot be upgraded. This has far-reaching legal consequences for the obligation to connect, contractual agreements and the feasibility of area developments.
Our approach to grid congestion
Addressing grid congestion requires a combination of in-depth knowledge of the Energy Act and a creative, multidisciplinary perspective. We look beyond the grid operator’s initial refusal. By combining expertise in energy law, real estate law, corporate law and environmental law, we create solutions that reduce the pressure on the public grid or distribute available capacity more intelligently.
Legal solutions and tools
The team assists clients in implementing alternative structures to circumvent or alleviate grid congestion:
- Advice on energy hubs when setting up local energy exchange between businesses, whereby surpluses and shortfalls are managed across one or more connections.
- Support with cable pooling, whereby various generation facilities, such as wind and solar, share a single grid connection.
- Support for direct lines regarding the legal and technical implementation of a private connection between an energy source and a large-scale consumer outside the public grid.
- Advice on closed systems (GS) when setting up a private electricity grid for a defined industrial or commercial site.
- Assistance with congestion management and disputes in discussions with grid operators regarding prioritisation and, where necessary, in dispute proceedings before the ACM concerning the obligation to connect.
Frequently asked questions
Although transmission system operators have a duty to provide transmission services, they may refuse to do so in the event of physical constraints. However, they must be able to demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to manage congestion. We assess whether a refusal is legally valid.
Under certain conditions, an exemption from the prohibition on the operation of a network by a party other than the network operator may be granted for the construction of a direct line between a producer and a customer. This requires careful legal structuring to comply with the Energy Act.
Yes, through what is known as an energy hub or a group ATO (Connection and Transmission Agreement), companies can make arrangements amongst themselves regarding the use of available capacity. This requires complex contractual agreements on balancing and liability.
