“If we want to build housing or allow businesses to flourish, this high-voltage substation is absolutely necessary.” This is what councilor Klaas de Vries (Sterk Meppel) says about the high-voltage substation of Tennet and Enexis that is currently being built on an industrial estate on the outskirts of Meppel.
“The power grid here in Meppel is absolutely locked down. Without this station we cannot continue to grow. That is why we wanted to do everything we could to make this happen.” Construction has recently started. It is expected to be ready in 2029. “We will be running at full speed here from 2031,” says Diederik Engelsman, director of management and maintenance at TenneT for the North region. He cannot say exactly how many people will be able to use the electricity from here.
At the station, TenneT supplies 110,000 volts of power to grid operator Enexis. This then ensures that the electricity reaches households and companies. There will be seven intermediate stations in Rogat, Nijeveen and Havelte, among others.
It is one of the three power stations that Enexis and TenneT are developing in southwest Drenthe to combat problems on the power grid. There will also be a high-voltage station at Hoogeveen and Wijster. A new one will also be built in Zwolle and two will be expanded in Zwolle to also address the problems in Northwest Overijssel.
“There are many customers here,” says Michel Wauters, director of high and medium voltage stations at Enexis. “We have many consumers here in the region, but we are also close to large companies that want to expand or companies that want to establish themselves here.” The location where this station is being built is on the Noord III business park. It borders the A32 and the Noord II business park, where large companies such as Pandriks and FrieslandCampina or a small data center are located. Noord III is still an industrial estate under development.
“If we want, we can almost draw it up here with companies,” says De Vries. “We notice that there is more interest in settling here due to the arrival of this high-voltage station. Companies opt for certainty. They know that they will have electricity here in a few years. If they are not sure that they will also have it in another city, they choose Meppel.” However, the allocation of the industrial estate has not yet started. This is partly due to a ruling by the Council of State. It has determined that additional nitrogen research is needed before the zoning plan for the area can actually be changed for an industrial park.
On the other side of the highway is North IV, where there were previously plans by the French Puy du Fou to create a theme park. The municipality is now looking at the possibility of installing wind turbines there. “We can then connect it to the grid here,” says De Vries. Wauters says that the arrival of these types of high-voltage stations is good for two reasons. “For the development and sustainability of society. We can connect more people and companies, and at the same time we ensure the import of additional wind and solar energy.” In 2029, the first customers in Southwest Drenthe and Northwest Overijssel will be connected to this station.
