Toespraak van minister Kamp bij de energieconferentie in Neuss, Duitsland (Engels)

Toespraak | 21-11-2016

Ladies and gentlemen,

It is now four years ago that we held the first Netherlands - North Rhine-Westphalian energy conference. That was in Heerlen. It is good to see all of you again today, and to see that so many entrepreneurs and experts from the world of energy have come to the attractive town of Neuss.

We have a great deal to discuss. Because the Netherlands and North Rhine-Westphalia are more than just good neighbours. Our economies are so closely intertwined that cooperation in the energy transition is an absolute necessity.

Just look at the electricity we exchange with each other. This is moving ahead so rapidly that we will probably increase the capacity of the cable between Wesel and Doetinchem next year. Its present capacity is 2400 megawatts and this will be increased to 3900 megawatts, an expansion equal to the consumption of 2.5 million households. This will enable the electricity sector to better absorb peaks and troughs across the border.

With the 'Energiewende', or energy transition, Germany has opted for a rapid upscaling of wind and solar power.

We are also taking major steps in the Netherlands. We are currently working on public tenders for five wind farms that will be among the largest in the world. The first tender can already be considered a success, as the price has already fallen to 7.2 cents per KWh. The trend is clearly for prices to continue to fall, as was recently the case in Denmark.

A new energy mix of wind, solar and other sources is therefore gradually coming about. What this requires above all is that our energy systems become more flexible in every respect. Test projects are already underway in various locations. Lochem in Gelderland and Widdersdorf near Cologne come to mind, for instance. Soon, small, distributed systems will help electricity consumers to store renewable energy for their own use or to offer it on the grid.

A large-scale test is currently underway in the inner city area of Lombok in Utrecht. Residents can subscribe to a package that includes the use of an electric car that runs on solar power and the fastest internet in town for €99 per month. Charging stations that can charge and discharge electricity have been placed in the neighbourhood. This enables electric cars to serve as vehicles for storing solar power.

We can also increase the flexibility of the energy system by storing wind and solar power in heat or in hydrogen. We are acquiring experience in both the Netherlands and in Germany with sustainably produced synthetic gas and with hydrogen. In the future, we will be able to produce hydrogen on a large scale with offshore wind.

With these technologies, we can continue to use, especially in the transition phase, the existing infrastructure for transport and storage. That will limit both the costs involved and the consequences for our living environment, and increase the level of support for the energy transition.

Heating for houses and offices will also change. In the Netherlands, we currently almost exclusively use natural gas for this. We will have to replace it with geothermal energy, residual heat from industry or sustainably driven heat pumps. The 'Heizwende', or heat transition, is gathering momentum in the Netherlands.

We are therefore moving towards an energy system that is highly decentralised, with large and varied numbers of customers as well as suppliers.

This can only be successful if the distributed systems in the neighbourhoods are part of the large, international energy market. This applies across the board, to electricity, heat, synthetic gas and hydrogen. Only then will profitable investments and innovations be possible.

Energy prices must be able to rise and fall freely, and businesses and households must have freedom of choice. That is appropriate for a decentralised energy system.

The markets do not automatically get everything right. Solar and wind power are not yet competitive. Accordingly, some overall government direction is still required. We need an effective system of European emission rights as a common instrument for this. To make sure that a price is paid for emitting CO2. We have to move towards this, step by step. The Netherlands will continue to advocate this.

In practice, this also means: ensuring that the distributed energy systems, the smart energy systems, can freely communicate with each other. So that smart devices such as electric cars, heat pumps or meters in homes can freely exchange information with the energy markets. What must not happen is that households or businesses become captive to the system of any single provider. Open information platforms are therefore necessary for an effectively operating energy market.

The Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) has already made substantial progress in creating this kind of open platform. It is cooperating closely and effectively with partners including the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and Evohaus.

The automotive market is also fully engaged in the energy transition. In the Netherlands, the psychologically significant barrier of a hundred thousand e-cars has been passed. It is good to see that German car manufacturers and Dutch suppliers of charging systems are working together closely to support this growth.

Driving long distances in electric cars must become just as convenient as doing so in petrol- or diesel-fuelled cars, so that you can use your car to drive to Tuscany or to the Dutch beaches. In the end, that should be possible with a single international charging card.

Today, another significant step is being taken towards such an open European network. I congratulate the largely German company E-Clearing and the Dutch company eViolin on their new alliance. You are among the five largest roaming platforms in Europe for services in the field of electric transport. With your new agreement, you will help drivers in a large part of Europe and contribute to rapid growth of transport by electric cars.

We are also seeing good examples in the field of hydrogen for road transport. I am thinking, for instance, of the initiative launched by Mercedes-Benz and Shell, among others, to build hundreds of hydrogen filling stations along motorways and at junctions, and to do so across borders.

One technology - based on batteries - does not exclude the other - based on hydrogen. It is especially necessary in the phase of the transition from fossil to sustainable fuels to use all available options. Each of them should therefore be given the chance to prove itself. And may the best contestant win. That will also strengthen public support for the energy transition.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In this transitional phase, planning and upscaling of the transition are essential. But we should keep an open mind for other ideas as well. Let us also offer room to small businesses, to passionate organisations and to innovative individuals.

Because the energy transition is a challenge for all of society, in which towns, provinces and Kreise (German administrative district) also play an important part. They often literally have to create room for new projects for wind or solar power or can act as launching customer for new forms of transportation. Cross-border projects in particular contribute substantially to a culture of understanding and cooperation. For instance, we can be proud of the energy management at the cross-border industrial estate near Aachen and of the mine water project in which we are experimenting with geothermal energy.

The Netherlands can learn from the example set by the Industriestandort (industrial superpower) Germany when it comes to a thoroughly considered long-term approach. Germany often sets the technological standard as a result.

The Dutch added value comes from our open, technology-neutral approach, with a significant focus on bringing innovations to the market and on logistics.

Together, we can play an important part in the German, Dutch, European and global 'Energiewende'.

More than we already do, we can engage in cooperation with each other, both at a policymaking level and at the level of specific innovations.

That is why it is so important, ladies and gentlemen, that you, as entrepreneurs, researchers and policymakers, have come together here today. Your combined knowledge is necessary for the energy future of the 35 million inhabitants of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Netherlands and their tens of thousands of businesses. We will certainly continue our cooperation, as can be seen here today.

This conference will be another milestone. I wish you all an inspiring day.