Netherlands Energy Information

Netherlands Energy Research

- Netherlands's Energy & Climate Policy Framework: The Netherlands aims for 39% renewable energy by 2030 and a 55% reduction in GHG emissions. Key policies include phasing out coal by 2030, promoting green hydrogen, and expanding nuclear energy. The government oversees energy and climate strategies, with local authorities playing a significant role. The energy market is liberalised, and renewable subsidies are provided through schemes like SDE++.

- Netherlands's Energy Companies: Top Dutch energy firms RWE, Eneco, and Vattenfall generate about 25% of the country's electricity, with autoproducers accounting for a third. Key players in oil and gas include Shell, ExxonMobil, and state-owned entities like EBN and GasTerra.

- Netherlands's Energy Supply & Demand: The Netherlands' energy mix has shifted significantly, with renewables now at 52% (up 41 points since 2010), while gas and coal shares have declined. Total energy consumption has decreased slightly, with solar and wind capacity expanding rapidly. The country remains a net exporter of oil products and a major player in Europe's energy market.

- Netherlands's Energy Use & Price by Sector: In 2024, household electricity prices dropped 23% after a 2023 surge, while industrial prices fell 18% but remained 65% higher than in 2021. The Netherlands had the EU's second-highest fuel prices. Electricity's share of final energy consumption rose to 24% in 2024, projected to reach 76% by 2050. Industrial energy use declined 0.7% annually since 2010, with gas dominant. Transport sector consumption fell 1% yearly, heavily reliant on oil. Residential, services, and agriculture saw a 1.5% annual decrease, with gas leading. Tax reliefs and price caps were implemented to mitigate high energy costs.

- Netherlands's Issues & Prospects: The Netherlands aims to expand offshore wind capacity to 70 GW by 2050, with interim targets of 21 GW by 2032 and 30-40 GW by 2040. Gasunie plans a 10 GW hydrogen transport network by early 2030. Electricity demand is projected to rise significantly, with wind power leading new capacity projects. Nuclear and biomass projects are also under development, alongside CCS and LNG infrastructure expansions.

Netherlands Total Energy Production & Consumption

Total energy consumption has been decreasing slightly since 2021 (-3.9%/year), reaching 61 Mtoe in 2024. It was decreasing over 2016-2019 (-0.8%/year), after a slight growth between 2014 and 2016 (+1.5%/year) thanks to the economic recovery, and a decrease by more than 1%/year between 2007 and 2014 due to the economic slowdown.

Graph: Primary Consumption Trends by Energy Source

Source: Netherlands energy report

Interactive Chart Netherlands Total Energy Production & Consumption

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data

Netherlands Oil Production & Consumption

Crude oil production is low and decreasing (0.6 Mt in 2024). Crude imports (57 Mt in 2024) mainly came from the US. The share of Russia dropped from 31% in 2021 to 0.5% in 2022; in 2023, there were no imports from Russia.

Graph: Crude Oil Production & Consumption

Source: Netherlands energy report

Interactive Chart Netherlands Crude Oil Production & Consumption

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data

Interactive Chart Netherlands Refined Oil Products Production & Consumption

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data

Netherlands Natural Gas Production & Consumption

Gas production has dropped by 89% since 2013, from 87 bcm to 10 bcm in 2024 (-18% in 2024), due to the production cap imposed on the Groningen field.

Source: Netherlands energy report

Interactive Chart Netherlands Gas Production & Consumption

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data

Netherlands Coal and Lignite Production & Consumption

The Netherlands imports all its coal consumption. Coal imports decreased by 3% in 2024 to 6.4 Mt, after a 28% decline in 2023 and a 3% increase in 2022. In 2021, imports increased by 41%. Between 2015 and 2019, coal imports decreased rapidly, by 14%/year, and then dropped by 42% in 2020 to 6 Mt.

Source: Netherlands energy report

Interactive Chart Netherlands Coal and Lignite Production & Consumption

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data

Netherlands Renewable in % Electricity Production

EZK is in charge of renewable energy policy, including the Stimulation of Sustainable Energy Production (SDE++ since 2020, Stimulering Duurzame Energieproductie) programme.

Source: Netherlands energy report

Interactive Chart Netherlands Share of Renewables in Electricity Production (incl hydro)

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data

Netherlands GHG emissions and CO₂ emissions

In its 2024 NECP, the Netherlands replaced its former 49% reduction target in 2030 by a target of at least a 55% reduction (including land use) in 2030. A total investment budget of €300m per year has been put in place over 2018-30 to promote actions to meet this target. In 2023, the country announced that it would spend €28bn in the coming years to meet 2030 climate goals.

Source: Netherlands energy report

Interactive Chart Netherlands CO₂ emissions

Source: Global Energy & CO₂ data