Dutch government allocates €100 million for battery pilots at solar parks

By Team IO

Outgoing Minister for Climate and Energy Jetten announced the allocation of €100 million in subsidies for a pilot with batteries at solar parks next year. As part of the presentation of the Spring Memorandum 2024, the government made a decision on the draft of the multi-year program Climate Fund 2025, containing the projects the cabinet intends to support in the years to come.

The energy storage endeavor

This step is part of a larger strategy to address issues of flexible power and grid congestion, which are critical in harnessing the full potential of renewable energy sources. In addition to this sum, the government reserved €200 million for the following period.

Last April, Jetten announced that he wanted to mandate the installation of batteries at solar parks and would allocate over €416 million via the Climate Fund. Last October, the minister unveiled a subsidy per kilowatt hour of deferred energy. Research institute CE Delft calculated that this budget would be enough to finance 160 to 330 megawatts of battery power.

Tight planning, a financial horizon until 2050 and active throughout the chain: this is how Voltgoed tackles grid congestion

Grid congestion – meaning the power grid is so full that congestion occurs – hits every new industrial park, every desired business expansion and even housing projects are at risk. The consequences are felt on two sides: no electricity is available at the times you need it, but a feed-in of self-generated energy is no longer possible.

While the initiative has been generally well-received, the Planbureau voor de Leefomgeving (PBL), a Dutch environmental assessment agency, has expressed concerns. They caution that an exclusive focus on battery storage could create an imbalanced playing field for other sustainable options. Despite this, the subsidy scheme is scheduled to open on 1 January 2025 and end in 2034, with the goal of achieving a significant increase in battery capacity at solar parks.