The Netherlands has proposed changes in its environmental decision for rapid track permits for electricity transmission and distribution projects above 21 kV, aimed at expanding the schedule capacity and facilitating the congestion until 2032.
The Ministry of Climate and Green Growth and Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning or the Netherlands has changed the country’s environmental decision with regard to the procedural acceleration of electricity projects.
The two government services have one draft decision About how electricity projects are considered necessary for the expansion of the electricity grid to be accelerated.
The general administrative order includes the construction, expansion, maintenance or adjustment of an electricity transmission or distribution system with a voltage level of 21 kV or higher.
Decisions regarding the construction of future solar farms, wind farms, offshore wind projects or other installations of the electricity project are not covered by the change of decree.
The change is intended to speed up the time that is required to get permits for relevant electricity projects and is mainly aimed at the establishment or change of an environmental plan, the decision on an application for an environmental permit or any construction activity with regard to the electricity project. It is a temporary measure, set to be set up to the beginning of 2032. The order also says that an informed appeal procedure will be made for the duration of the designation.
According to the design order, the procedural acceleration of such projects is needed to accelerate the expansion of the electricity grid in the Netherlands and to relieve schedule congestion.
The design change adds that Procedural acceleration will broadly cover three types of projects. The first, which covers 220 kV/380 kV connections and high-voltage stations, is expected to influence 10 to 20 projects in 2032. The second category, 110 kV/150 kV connections and high-voltage stations, is expected to cover around 100 to 125 projects by 2032. The third category, which covers projects of Regional Grid operators with a voltage level of 21 kV or higher, is expected to comprise between 300 and 450 projects by 2032 in the three largest regional grid operators in the Netherlands.
“It should be noted that this is an expected number, and the exact number of projects is difficult to predict. The exact number will partially depend on the number of bottlenecks on the electricity grid that can occur in the coming years,” says the design order. “This is not expected to lead to a significant increase in the number of projects.”
Minister of Climate and Green Growth, Sophie Hermans, has one letter To the Dutch House of Representatives who offer the Chamber the opportunity to give his opinion on the draft decision before it is submitted to the advisory department of the Council of State and then adopted.
Work on exploring gears for the expansion of the Dutch electricity grid has been underway since 2023, with findings included in a legislative program entitled Faster expansion of the electricity grid.
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