Dutch residents will pay an average of EUR 140 more per year for electricity in 2027 due to a sharp increase in electricity and gas network tariffs, NU.nl reports, citing preliminary estimates from the Dutch Consumer and Markets Authority (ACM).
According to the portal, access fees to the electricity network will increase by an average of EUR 89 per year, and to the gas distribution network by an additional EUR 52. This represents an additional cost of approximately EUR 12 per month. The final tariffs will be announced in December. On average, network tariffs will increase by 19%, although the increase will vary depending on the operator. As NU.nl notes, this significantly exceeds the growth rate of recent years. A significant increase in costs is also expected for companies connected to TenneT's high-voltage grid.
According to the portal, the main reason for the increase is the large-scale investment in expanding and modernizing the country's overloaded electricity grid. According to some estimates, approximately 235 billion euros will be needed over the next 15 years to build new power lines and substations.
“We are well aware that this is a significant increase and that it affects customers“, said Walter Bien, CFO of grid company Liander. He added that operators are trying to spend the funds as efficiently as possible, but expanding the grid infrastructure requires significant investments. As NU.nl notes, grid congestion is already limiting housing construction and the ability of businesses to expand production. According to some estimates, the associated losses to the economy could range from 10 to 40 billion euros per year.
The sharp increase in tariffs is also linked to the start of a new five-year regulatory period. The new rules allow network operators to pass on infrastructure investment costs to consumers more quickly, and also to reflect the cost increases of the previous five years in tariffs. According to ACM Director Michiel Denkers, the main increase will occur in 2027, after which tariffs are expected to increase by approximately 5-6% per year.
Rising gas prices
At the same time, connecting to the gas network is becoming significantly more expensive. In addition to changes in calculation methods, this is due to falling gas consumption: the costs of maintaining the infrastructure are being spread over fewer and fewer consumers.
Against this background, representatives of network companies have called on the authorities to set long-term energy priorities, in particular deciding in which areas district heating networks should be developed and where the industry should be located in the future. They believe that the lack of such decisions forces operators to prepare the infrastructure for several possible scenarios at the same time, creating a risk of overinvestment.
Government response
The Dutch Minister for Climate Policy and Green Growth, Stentje van Veldhoven, said that the government understood citizens' concerns about rising costs. She also stressed the need to gradually reduce the use of fossil fuels and increase the share of renewable energy. She said that energy “will remain affordable“ for most residents and that a special fund will be set up this coming winter to help households that cannot pay their bills.
The Netherlands is expected to switch to a new electricity tariff system from 2029. Currently, all households pay the same fixed amount, but in the future the amount of the payment may vary depending on the volume of electricity consumed and the time of day it is used.