The electricity station in Waalwijk has been expanded. Much more power can be taken off and supplied back. However, this expansion is not yet a solution for the 50 companies that are still waiting for a connection. According to Enexis, the ‘extra’ power has already been allocated. “We’ll have to work here again in the future.”
The demand for electricity is skyrocketing. A headache for TenneT, which is responsible for the transmission of power in the high-voltage cables. More and more electricity is being generated on a large scale, for example at sea. But that electricity must be able to reach the electricity stations and continue from there. But those stations are often old and outdated.
Two-way traffic
The station in Waalwijk has now been completely renovated. There is extra capacity and an extra transformer has been added. According to Peter Hofland of TenneT an absolute must. “We no longer have to deal with the one-way traffic of the past. Electricity was generated by burning natural gas and that went to the user via a cable system. Nowadays we have two-way traffic.”
In Waalwijk more high voltage can now enter and that is converted in the transformers to a lower voltage, which can be used in the residential area. The transformer house in the neighborhood converts that to an even lower voltage, which ensures that your toaster works or you can charge your phone.
Waiting list remains
Enexis deals with ‘medium voltage’ and ‘low voltage’ and is pleased that Waalwijk has more capacity. Although the problems, also in Waalwijk, are far from resolved. “The extra capacity has already been allocated. In addition, homes always have priority when it comes to power needs. This expansion was badly needed, but demand has risen faster than we could have imagined in 2017 when these expansion plans were made,” says Karin Mathijssen of Enexis.
And that is bad news for companies that are still waiting for a connection. In Waalwijk there are 50. In addition, another 140 companies have submitted a request to be allowed to supply power back. (with more than 200 panels). There is not yet room for that on the net.
34 stations in Brabant
Enexis has learned from it. In addition to this station in Waalwijk, Brabant has 33 electricity stations, all of which must be doubled in size. In addition, two completely new stations will also be built, all before 2050. “We will go as large as possible with those expansions. Expand first, the requests will come later. Then we should have enough space there.”
And that space must be sought. Because our electricity needs will grow enormously in the coming years, says Peter Hofland. “We assume a doubling to a fivefold increase. That means that everyone will notice something. More and larger stations will arise and more high-voltage pylons will have to be built. Perhaps not the prettiest picture, but it is badly needed.”
Priority list
In the coming period, the stations in Hapert and Tilburg Noord (where, among other things, the electricity for the Efteling comes from) will be next. In addition, the province of Brabant has designated seven projects as ‘priority’. The Eindhoven Metropolitan Area is one of them.
Tens of thousands of new homes are to be built there and an enormous sustainability improvement is being made through the large-scale generation of electricity. TenneT and Enexis are taking the list of priorities of the province into account in making new plans for strengthening the energy infrastructure in Brabant.
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