Geothermie Nederland highlights geothermal financing options
A Members’ Meeting by Geothermie Nederland highlighted the financing challenges and strategies available for geothermal energy projects.
Geothermie Nederland, the umbrella organization for all stakeholders in the Dutch geothermal industry, recently held a members’ meeting with the theme “Geothermal heat, a vital source of energy.” With more than 90 members and guests, the panel discussions revolved around financial support for geothermal development projects.
All the presentation materials from the meeting can be downloaded from the Geothermie Nederland website.
Of chief concern was the “chicken and egg” problem of developing a geothermal energy project or a new heating network. Presentations from Ennatuurlijk, ECW, and Aardyn addressed this issue.
Earlier this year, Dutch heat company Ennatuurlijk acquired ECW Geoholding BV, the geothermal division of ECW Energy. This acquisition showed the growth potential of geothermal energy, both for greenhouse horticulture and the built. Aardyn also provided insight into how the financial decisions in the various parts of the heat chain directly influence each other. environment.
Geothermie Nederland Chairperson Hans Bolscher spoke with panel members from Vattenfall about geothermal energy as a strategic and financial choice, about smart solutions to cover the financial risks of development, the importance of collaboration between various stakeholders.
The second part of the meeting provided an insight into the financial challenges that many early geothermal projects are currently facing. Existing projects have been compromised by high energy prices and complicated market positions caused by the war in Ukraine. The presentation “ING’s perspective on the geothermal energy sector” cited the geothermal project in Maasdijk as a good financing example with funding coming from four banks.
A panel with representatives from Rabobank, ING, and Meewind provided the perspective of banks and investors on the financial value of geothermal energy. The discussions indicated that increasing professionalism and expertise of the geothermal sector means that geothermal project development was also improving, making geothermal energy increasingly attractive for investors.
Source: Geothermie Nederland