In September, the Netherlands published an updated national energy system plan that sees phased expansion of the grid towards an increase in electricity and renewable heat in final energy consumption for the built environment, road transport, industry and agriculture from 26% to approximately 60–70%. The country’s electricity sector is growing quickly, as numerous projects demonstrate.

‘The Netherlands is fast developing into a more attractive jurisdiction for BESS [battery energy system storage] projects,’ write Marieke Driessen, Partner, and Ellen Vintges, Senior Associate at international law firm Stibbe. ‘Whereas other countries took an early lead in BESS project development, the Dutch market was behind the curve due to limitations in supporting legal infrastructure for BESS development, grid capacity and connection issues, high grid fees and limited bankability of the business case. However, this has changed as a result of various initiatives yielding results starting from 2025.’

They report that within the state budget for 2027, the Dutch government announced further support for energy storage in the form of enhanced tax advantages for companies investing in innovative energy storage systems. From 2027, the Netherlands must establish goals for non-fossil flexibility to stabilise the electricity grid pursuant to the EU Electricity Regulation, on the basis of assessments determining how much clean flexibility electricity systems require and identifying existing barriers.