Liander sees capacity, but waiting list remains long
Businesses in part of Amsterdam may be helped sooner, while other connections face waits lasting years longer.
Liander expects capacity on the electricity grid to become available sooner than expected in parts of Amsterdam. This will help some businesses on the waiting list, but the network operator warns that congestion in the city and region will remain severe for the foreseeable future.
The additional capacity is emerging around the Oostzaan high-voltage substation, which supplies electricity to parts of Amsterdam-Noord, Oost, Centrum, West and the harbour area. Liander reports that around 120 Amsterdam customers are on the waiting list there. The restriction at TenneT is lifted for this group, but capacity on the regional Liander grid remains limited.
As a result, Liander says around one fifth of applications in the area can now be approved. Which businesses are dealt with first depends on the extent to which they can make their electricity demand flexible. According to the network operator, businesses that consume or feed less electricity into the grid at peak times can be helped sooner.
The news therefore does not mean the end of the waiting list. Liander says the exact number of customers who can actually be connected depends on technical conditions and agreements with businesses. The municipality of Amsterdam is also warning businesses that new or higher-capacity connections across the city may remain subject to a waiting list for the time being.
Planning is worsening in other parts of Amsterdam. In the Diemen sub-network, the expected point at which around 150 customer applications can be removed from the waiting list has been pushed back to the end of 2037. In the area around Vijfhuizen, Liander says the expected end date for congestion has shifted from 2031 to a period between 2033 and 2036.
The network operators are meanwhile building new substations, cables and connections. Liander and TenneT have, among other projects, begun construction of the Nieuwe Hemweg substation. The project is intended to provide additional capacity for homes, businesses, community facilities and the sustainability transition of the harbour, but it will not automatically resolve all existing applications.
Since 1 July, small and large connections have been placed on a single waiting list in areas affected by grid congestion. The ACM rules give certain public-interest functions priority, such as safety, drinking water and some educational and healthcare facilities. Ordinary business applications do not receive that priority automatically. For businesses, the new capacity therefore mainly represents an opportunity, not a guarantee of a quick connection.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- Grid capacity is becoming available sooner in parts of Amsterdam.
- Around 120 customers are on the waiting list in the Oostzaan area.
- The capacity is limited and depends partly on flexible electricity use.
- Other areas face longer expected waiting times.
- ACM prioritisation gives certain public-interest functions priority.
Left
Arguments A left-wing approach emphasises that electricity grids are a public basic service. Housing, healthcare, education and the sustainability transition should take priority over commercial projects, and businesses should not be allowed to compete for scarce capacity solely on the basis of financial strength.
Values Public direction, social equality and a rapid energy transition.
Consequences Strict prioritisation can protect social objectives, but it can also delay investment and employment when businesses are excluded for long periods.
Centre
Arguments The institutional approach seeks to combine transparent ACM rules, predictable waiting lists and investment by network operators with flexible use. No connection can be promised while physical capacity is lacking.
Values Equal treatment, feasibility and reliable infrastructure.
Consequences A combination of grid expansion, flexible contracts and prioritisation can distribute the pressure, but it will take years and require continuous monitoring.
Right
Arguments A right-wing approach warns that central prioritisation gives too much power to determine which businesses may grow. Businesses should be given room to organise their own solutions, for example through batteries, shared connections or contracts outside peak hours.
Values Market forces, entrepreneurship and limited government intervention.
Consequences Greater flexibility can free up capacity more quickly, but businesses with fewer financial resources may fall behind and public interests may come under pressure.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The article uses only figures and forecasts found in public publications by Liander and Amsterdam. The uncertainty over exactly who will be connected and when has been explicitly retained.
- confirmed Around 120 Amsterdam customers are on the waiting list around Oostzaan. — Liander gives this figure in its area analysis. source
- confirmed Around one fifth of applications there may be approved. — Liander states that the Liander bottleneck remains and that around 20 per cent may be approved. source
- confirmed In Diemen, the expected schedule for approximately 150 applications has been pushed back to the end of 2037. — This is stated in Liander's regional planning. source
- confirmed Small and large connections have been on a single waiting list in congestion areas since 1 July. — Liander describes the new prioritisation rules and the combined waiting list. source
- confirmed Ordinary business applications do not automatically receive public-interest priority. — Liander cites small and medium-sized businesses as an example of applications without automatic priority. source
Editor's note
The allocation of capacity and the waiting times mentioned come from Liander publications. The exact figure from the news feed has not been independently confirmed; the article therefore refers to a group of customers and uses only figures given in the primary source.Sources
- Langere wachttijden in Noord-Holland maar ook eerder ruimte voor deel Amsterdamse klanten — Liander
- Liander en TenneT starten bouw van grootste gezamenlijke elektriciteitsstation van Amsterdam — Liander
- Stroomaansluiting voor ondernemers — Gemeente Amsterdam
- Prioriteit voor aanvragen op de wachtlijst — Liander
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