Will the election results bring the energy transition to a standstill?

What awaits us as citizens if Russia no longer supplies gas to the Netherlands? This question has been around for some time, but the realization that it affects our energy security has only recently dawned. At once we realize that Russia is not an ally and a reliable gas supplier. We thought we had a good business deal, but that turned out to be unfounded. And we have not thought together about scenarios for a controlled transition to a new energy system.

Now, with steam and boiling water, the Netherlands must enter the energy transition. Experts fall over each other and tight deadlines are set. Many energy transition plans are made behind desks and drawing tables. These plans have not received support from the Dutch population. Politics has fought the gas crisis with a lot of money and will continue to focus on technology such as heat pumps and heating networks. This is now called the energy transition.

This election result is the political momentum to “stop right here” with the energy transition as it is currently being shaped by politics. This “take time to reconsider” does not mean more plans and reports from The Hague. We must seize this opportunity to create scenarios “from the bottom up” based on open data and transparent calculation tools. This data and these tools are ready for collective use by all Dutch people to create very concrete scenarios at district and neighborhood level with the help of experts.

Experts are simultaneously working on concrete scenarios at regional and national level. These scenarios are brought together and linked step by step. In this way we determine the future of the energy transition together.

Would you like to know more about data and scenarios?

Please contact Aart van der Vlist, aart@sblc.nl