The transition to renewable energy is greatly delayed by lengthy procedures involving “red tape” in large wind and solar energy projects. And that’s a shame because the major climate reports from the UN climate panel IPCC and the war in Ukraine make it clear that the energy transition needs to be accelerated. That says director Arie Koornneef of ASN Bank, the sustainability-oriented part of de Volksbank and an investor in these types of projects.
According to Koornneef, it sometimes takes two years for a project, such as a new onshore wind farm, to go from the idea phase to the operational phase. This has to do with procedures for granting subsidies, obtaining the necessary permits and other processes. Koornneef calls on the parties involved, including governments but also financial institutions, to see whether this could not be done faster. The latter also applies to the process of involving the local community in projects. The ASN boss thinks that this could also be done faster, although skipping this step is not an option, according to him.
At the end of February, the IPCC underlined once again what the consequences could be if the world does nothing or too little against climate change. This concerns, for example, a rise in sea levels that would endanger the survival of European coastal towns. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has also created a broad awareness that Western Europe must get rid of its dependence on oil and gas from Russia as soon as possible.
more enthusiasm
Koornneef has the feeling that there is increasing enthusiasm for the theme of sustainability anyway. He bases this on the growth in the number of ASN customers. Last year, more than 49,000 were added, making the bank now good for almost 835,000 customers. According to Koornneef, new customers are important to his bank, because a larger following would provide more influence on making society more sustainable. More and more sustainable investment accounts are also being opened at ASN.
Koornneef cannot indicate whether this growth has also resulted in better financial results for ASN. For this he refers to the annual figures of the parent company of ASN. De Volksbank made less profit last year, it was announced earlier. The financial group was troubled by the persistently low interest rates. Since the nationalization of the old SNS Reaal in 2013, de Volksbank has been owned by the State. According to the Ministry of Finance, de Volksbank is not yet ready to stand on its own two feet.
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