Multi-party partnership created for geothermal heating in Netherlands
Amstelveen, North Holland, Netherlands (source:Bart from Amstelveen, Holland, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
Carlo Cariaga
26 Jun 2023
Four companies with existing geothermal exploration licenses in North Holland and Utrecht, Netherlands have joined forces in a multi-party partnership.
Four companies that have been involved in efforts to develop geothermal heating in parts of North Holland and Utrecht, Netherlands, have agreed to join forces in a partnership. Each party brings a different specialization to the group, helping to ensure the success of the group’s geothermal projects.
Joining this partnership are Hightree Energy, IPS Geothermal, Energie voor Elkaar, and Tullip Energy. These parties have already been granted exploration licenses for geothermal covering the municipalities of Haarlemmermeer, Amstelveen, Uithoorn, Aalsmeer, and De Ronde Venen. The area where the partners intend to search for geothermal resources covers several municipalities, potentially offering thousands of households and business customers an alternative to natural gas heating.
Each party brings a valuable contribution to the table in terms of skill and experience. Hightree Energy represents greenhouse horticulture, IPS Geothermal brings a wealth of experience in geothermal projects worldwide, Tullip Energy is a leader in mining, oil and gas, and geothermal, and Energie voor Elkaar comes with knowledge in the field of developing sustainable heat networks.
“Collaboration with specialists is essential for the successful development of geothermal energy. This requires both the technical expertise for drilling and knowledge in the field of deep strata. The knowledge and experience to actually be able to use the heat that is extracted is also an essential part of a collaboration,” commented Nico Kuipers from Tullip Energy.
We had previously reported on the efforts of Tullip Energy to convert old NAM gas wells to geothermal heating, primarily to supply heat to homes and horticultural facilities.
“The Energie voor Elkaar (Energy for Each Other) platform comprises various companies, each with its own task in the development and realization of heat sources and in supplying heat to customers via a heat network. For example, Energy Transition Support is a development company within the Energy for Each Other platform and the permit holder for this project,” added Valentijn Kleijnen of Energie voor Elkaar.
“The approach is to develop heating networks of some size as soon as possible and, where possible, also to start using the residual heat available from data centers and sewage treatment plants. In this way we ensure that the necessary infrastructure and the purchase of heat is already arranged.”
The partnership further aims to conduct more research to map out the geothermal heating potential with provinces and municipalities, residents, and entrepreneurs. However, there is also a recognition that the geothermal heating is only useful if heating networks are already in place. If plans proceed as expected and all stakeholders meet their target dates, geothermal heating in this region can be available by 2028.
Source: Polderwarmte
