Liander places eastern Dutch customers on grid connection waiting list until 2027
Dutch grid operator Liander has placed new high-voltage connection applications in eastern Gelderland on a waiting list due to insufficient capacity. The decision affects 16 municipalities bordering Germany, with connections deferred until at least July 2027.
Liander, the Dutch grid manager, has placed customers in eastern municipalities on a waiting list for high-voltage grid connections. The company confirmed that current capacity is insufficient to accommodate new connections immediately.
According to Liander, the lack of available high-voltage grid capacity means these new customers will not be able to connect until the waiting list begins on January 1, 2027.
Scope of Bottlenecks
Liander oversees the electrical grid in Gelderland and North Holland, along with significant portions of Flevoland, Friesland, and South Holland. A capacity update released at the end of October outlined the current condition of this infrastructure. The document centered on large-scale consumption links above 3 x 80 amperes, pinpointing 14 new bottlenecks where the network hit its maximum connection threshold.
Among these fourteen sites, 11 are dedicated solely to electricity consumption or purchase. Two bottlenecks pertain to electricity feed-in, and one encompasses both consumption and feed-in. Grid operators are implementing more flexible capacity to address these limitations.
Regional Distribution
Liander’s November 2 capacity update details where the fourteen bottlenecks are concentrated. Friesland is the most affected province, accounting for five of the identified constraints. Both Gelderland and North Holland face four bottlenecks each, while Flevoland has one. The announcement specifically impacts sixteen municipalities in eastern Gelderland bordering Germany.
| Province | Number of Bottlenecks |
|---|---|
| Friesland | 5 |
| Gelderland | 4 |
| North Holland | 4 |
| Flevoland | 1 |
Capacity in these constrained areas is now allocated according to the national prioritisation framework. Liander CTO Joris de Groot noted that while the company has realised significant flexible capacity, it is not yet sufficient, acknowledging the impact on local customers and developments. Grid operators are investigating available capacity within responsible limits, while working with government authorities to accelerate grid expansions.
Allocation Rules and Exceptions
- Customers with new grid connection applications face a waiting period until at least July 1, 2027.
- Housing projects registered before July 1, 2026, are excepted if local grid capacity allows.
- Since July, the Netherlands has applied new rules for allocating scarce grid capacity.
- Priority is given first to measures ensuring grid safety and parties reducing congestion.
- Public infrastructure, including hospitals, police, and fire stations, receives the next level of priority.
- Housing, drinking water, and sewage facilities are prioritised alongside public infrastructure.
- Customers without societal priority are allocated capacity last.
- Pressure to find flexible capacity and accelerate grid expansions remains high.
What to watch
This spring, Liander will partner with transmission system operator TenneT to evaluate connection capacity availability for July 2027 and beyond. While current initiatives have not yet secured enough capacity to onboard waiting-list customers in the near term, adequate high-voltage capacity is available to connect parts of the queue in other Gelderland regions and the Flevopolder beginning January 1, 2027. Specific impacts for individual customers and local areas will be detailed in the upcoming period.
Source: pv magazine. This article is an original Luminity report based on the linked source.