Which new construction projects can still go ahead and which cannot? There is still great uncertainty among municipalities about future housing construction plans after grid operator Enexis provisionally set the signals to red for new power connections a few weeks ago. As a result, tens of thousands of new houses are at risk of being delayed in Eindhoven alone. And yet there is a major construction task ahead.
The places in our province where the blows will fall are parts of Bernheze, Maashorst, Boekel, Helmond, Asten, Deurne, Geldrop-Mierlo, Someren, Eindhoven, Veldhoven, Eersel, Loon op Zand, Oisterwijk, Tilburg, Vught, Oss, Den Bosch and Sint-Michielsgestel.
New rules
What’s up again? Enexis always reserved a small part of the available electricity grid for new houses and apartments. But due to new rules from the Netherlands Authority for Consumers & Markets (ACM) and new agreements with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, this is no longer allowed from 1 July.
Organizations or bodies that are of crucial importance from a social perspective will now be given priority. New connections for new-build homes and even charging stations must then be at the back of the priority row. They are still given priority over companies without priority.
But in the above areas there will be nothing left to distribute after July 1. According to calculations by Enexis, the electricity grid there is so full that there is no room for new or heavier connections for the time being.
Working on taking stock
After a tour of those municipalities, to which the majority responded, it appears that much is still unclear. That is why municipalities are busy taking stock and discussions are underway with Enexis, among others, they indicate.
A number of them say they expect the first regional figures in the coming weeks as to how many housing construction plans are at risk. And yet houses need to be added.
In the municipality of Sint-Michielsgestel, 23 projects with a total of 295 houses are at risk of coming to a standstill or being delayed. This partly concerns plans that are still in the pipeline and partly concerns concrete construction projects.
The municipalities in the Brainport region are working together to build an additional 62,000 homes in the coming years. About half of this should come from Eindhoven. “In principle, all housing projects that are not yet under construction, and for which there is no certainty about the availability of transport capacity, run a real risk of delays due to grid congestion. This means that potentially approximately 25,000 to 30,000 homes could be affected up to and including 2033.”
The same lack of clarity also applies in Helmond. Last year, that municipality started a ‘grid congestion booster team’ that helped think about solutions for the already full power grid. More money must now be made available for this, in the hope that a solution will emerge for the city. “We are going to expand the driving team and supplement it with external knowledge and experience.”
Thinking in solutions
Loon op Zand is also thinking of solutions to reduce congestion on the power grid, for example in the evenings. At such times the power grid is placed under greater strain. “We are investigating the use of energy hubs and battery storage.”
It is clear that municipalities are concerned about the power problem. Someren says that this is partly due to the fact that there is no solution yet and that it is still uncertain how the municipality itself can keep a finger in the pie.
The municipality of Maashorst also sees that pressing the pause button can have a major impact. Not only in construction plans, but also in other developments in the municipality, such as expansion of sports facilities. “While the waiting time and available capacity are still unclear, and residents and developers are in uncertainty,” said Maashorst. “At the same time, we look for creative solutions to ensure that projects continue as best as possible.”
