Dutch renewable power remains scarce

January 2, 2016

Renewable power generated in the Netherlands remains a scarce commodity, but Climex is seeing the demand for Guarantees of Origin (GOs) from Dutch facilities steadily increase. These certificates are a mechanism that private and public-sector parties use to support Dutch sustainable energy projects. But the supply of Dutch GOs is limited and there is very little transparency in terms of their price and availability.

Less than one-third of all GOs are traded on the free market. The rest are used by suppliers to increase the sustainability of their own energy, produced at their own production facilities for their own customers. This frustrates the effect of the free market and prevents realistic pricing of the GO. That means that for the time being the GO’s contribution to the growth of sustainable energy in the Netherlands remains limited.

There are, however, opportunities emerging that allow a direct contribution to renewable energy projects by restructuring the purchasing process. The more these opportunities are pursued, the faster the market will reach a turning point at which the Dutch sustainable energy consumer will play a role in the new business models and make a real contribution to the energy transition.