The price of electricity has remained stable high over the past week. The price on the Epex Spot continued to move just above €200 per MWh, with the traditional dip over the past weekend. However, concerns about the overload of the current power grid, especially due to the input from solar panels (solarPV) are increasing.
The price of electricity has also not made erratic movements in the past week. Two weeks ago, the price tended firmly below €200 per MWh, the level around which the price has been moving for quite some time. The sun-drenched days, among other things, pushed the price to a level of around €160 per MWh. At the beginning of last week, with days with significantly more cloudiness, the price rose again to a level of around €210 per MWh.
Although the sun has regularly failed in recent days, solar PV still provides by far the highest share of renewable energy in last week's mix. Figures published by Martien Visser, professor of energy transition, show that more than 40% of all energy sources used came from renewable energy. Half of this share again consists of solar PV and just under 13% of wind energy. It has happened several times in recent weeks that the Netherlands was fully supplied with electricity from sun and wind for several hours. Remarkably enough, almost half of the electricity production consisted of natural gas, while political pressure is being exerted there to use it sparingly. However, the Dutch coal-fired power stations are still off, so that few alternatives are available.
Power grid creaks and beeps
On average, about 10% of the Dutch electricity demand is met by zonPV. According to Visser, this is the highest share in the EU. According to the European Commission's plans, this must be at least 20% within eight years. Therein lies a challenge, because the current power grid squeaks and cracks at the seams. Research by real estate consultant Savills shows that in more than a third of the municipalities there is little or no space left on the power grid. As a result, new distribution centers, business premises and data centers are in many cases not connected, BNR reports. The delay can be up to years. This can also have consequences for solar panels with feeding back.
Grid operator Liander has announced that it will significantly upgrade the electricity network in the coming years. In more than 25 years, by 2050, the capacity should have doubled. This expansion is not going very well for the time being, because a lot of time is lost on procedures and permit processes.