Netherlands needs 9GW of BESS by 2030, says TSO TenneT

June 22, 2023
LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email

Dutch transmission system operator (TSO) TenneT says the Netherlands will need 9GW of large-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity connected to its grid by 2030.

TenneT said it faces several near-term challenges on its electricity network which BESS projects of 70MW-500MW in size could help alleviate. Grid volatility in terms of frequency, inertia and voltage will rise due to an increasing mix of wind and solar.

Large-scale BESS could also help with the transport of power across the grid through upward and downward dispatch, TenneT said in its corporate presentation which you can read here.

It could also provide balancing through FFR (fast frequency response) and FCR (frequency containment reserve), as well as inertia and reactive power products.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The grid-scale energy storage in the Netherlands market has yet to take off with regulatory challenges the main barrier according to one developer interviewed earlier this year. One of the country’s main utilities Eneco recently called for more action from its own government as it announced a 200MWh project in neighbouring Belgium.

TenneT said the BESS could also provide additional flexibility using bilateral contracts with network operators or through market-based congestion management, although the TSO warned it was important that batteries do not worsen grid congestion.

It illustrated how the BESS could be used, what the system benefits are, and how the BESS could be monetised in the table below.

Alongside large-scale BESS, TenneT has also modelled the quantity of other BESS applications which could help the grid. By 2030, it forecast 2.2GW of EV batteries (presumably V2G or V2L-enabled), 4.2GW of ‘household batteries’ and 3.7GW of ‘solar PV batteries’ in order to help with grid flexibility, alongside the 9GW of grid-scale systems.

It also provided a snapshot of what the geographical spread of the batteries would need to look like.

Read Next

March 16, 2026
We hear about the progress made and challenges ahead at the policy level from Jacopo Tosoni of the trade association Energy Storage Europe.
March 16, 2026
A 500MW/1,000MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) with grid-forming inverters has gone into commercial operation in Cambodia.
Premium
March 16, 2026
Hamilton Locke partner Matt Baumgurtel warns of a seismic shift as distributed energy resources with “zero marginal cost” emerge.
March 13, 2026
Australia’s MGA Thermal has secured AU$17 million (US$12 million) in new investment for its long-duration thermal energy storage technology as it enters the commercial scale-up phase.
March 12, 2026
Another busy week of BESS news from across Europe, with investors and owner-operators ABO, Field, Aspiravi, Prime Capital, Latvenergo, Sonnedix and Amarenco progressing large-scale projects across Europe.