District Heating
To accelerate the adoption of district heating networks in the Netherlands, we are working with municipalities, provinces and network companies to develop new district heating companies. For this the Dutch government established the National Heat Investor (Nationale Deelneming Warmte – NDW), which is currently part of Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN).
Forty percent of the Dutch energy consumption is used for heat. The Netherlands still relies heavily on foreign natural gas for this. District heating and local sources such as geothermal energy contribute to Dutch energy security because they reduce our dependence on other countries. By realising 2.5 million heat connections by 2050, they also provide a major boost to the energy transition.
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EBN’s role
Under the Collective Heat Act (Wet collectieve warmte – Wcw), Dutch municipalities and provinces will be able to establish public heat companies. These companies will then develop district heating. Through the National Heat Investor – NDW, the State supports these initiatives, provided they are regional in scale or have the potential to grow to that scale. The National Heat Investor is an autonomous state company housed within EBN.
Under the NDW model, local control of the heat transition remains with municipalities. They consign heat plots and develop municipal heat plans. With the National Heat Investor as shareholder in heat companies consigned to a heat plot, advantages arise in financing, planning, development and procurement. This should translate into lower costs for end users.
