Construction of the wind farm along the N34 near Emmen will be halted until at least 2031. Alderman Pascal Schrik confirms this. Energy supplier Pure Energie left the project in October. The municipality is not going crazy with the plan for the time being. Because due to the currently overcrowded power grid, there is no option to connect the wind farm until 2031.
Pure Energie announced in October that it would stop developing the N34 wind farm between the Emmer district of Westenesch and Erm. The developer indicated at the time that changed market conditions led to that decision.
This is the second time that plans for a wind farm at this location have come to a standstill. In 2016, the municipality of Emmen designated three areas where wind farms were allowed. In addition to the location along the N34, these were the Pottendijk in Emmer-Compascuum and the Zwartenbergerweg near Barger-Compascuum.
Things quickly went wrong on the N34. The conversations between Pure Energie and residents (who are allowed to benefit from the installation of turbines) came to nothing. And Pure Energie was close to the maximum permitted size of the mills (150 meters). No profitable plan could be realized on this basis.
The plans then disappeared. Pure Energie restarted the project in 2023. The increased electricity prices and wind turbines that are cheaper to produce made it attractive to start again.
But this fall the plug was pulled again due to, among other things, the high uncertainty in the energy market, high connection costs and disappointing energy prices.
The municipality of Emmen has therefore been considering the future of the location in recent weeks. Councilor Schrik is sorry that the development of the wind farm is being delayed again, but emphasizes that the municipality has acted carefully.
Schrik: “The process was done carefully, towards Pure Energy and towards residents,” he says. “We listened to the environment and made a plan together. We informed residents separately about the departure of Pure Energie.”
According to Schrik, Pure Energie’s withdrawal was unexpected. “We were always in discussions with each other and just before the summer holidays they submitted the official application. Then they indicated that the conditions would provide a feasible business case. That was the starting point.”
According to him, the deteriorated market played an important role in Pure Energie’s decision. “Energy suppliers are making less profit than before. Profit is still possible, but the margins are too low for them. The question is: how much profit will you settle for?”
The municipality of Emmen must comply with the Drenthe Wind Energy structural vision by 2030. Emmen has been given a task by the national government and the province to provide 195 megawatts of wind energy. Due to the delay, that objective now appears unattainable.
“We are in constant discussions with the province,” says Schrik. “The problem occurs in almost all Drenthe municipalities. The province understands that we are not achieving the goals beyond our control.”
The councilor is referring to the delay in the construction of a high-voltage station at the Boerdijk in Veenoord. The arrival of this installation should provide air to the overcrowded power grid. But delivery is now expected three to possibly five years later (2031-2033).
Schrik therefore does not expect a new developer anytime soon. “The number of parties is small and those parties know the margins. Moreover, there is no network capacity.”
The capacity problem also applies to solar parks. New solar parks cannot send their power to the network “Only energy hubs currently work well,” Schrik explains. “Energy is generated locally and used directly, without being fed back into the grid.”
According to Schrik, there is no way to accelerate the expansion of the electricity grid. “You can pull grass, but it doesn’t make it grow faster,” he concludes with a metaphor.
The municipality sees no reason to adjust previously established conditions. “The tip height remains 150 meters,” says Schrik. “We are also not going to look for other locations, as previously at the Zwartenbergerweg in Barger-Compascuum.”