Chart national transport grid
01-01-2004
TenneT manages the national transport grid in the Netherlands. We use the national grid to transmit large quantities of electricity longer distances. The transmission grid is also connected to the grids of our neighbouring countries.
What does TenneT manage?
The national high-voltage grid consists of three types of high-voltage lines and cables: 380 kilovolt (kV), 220 kV and 150 kV. These are the standard voltage levels used in Europe for the transmission of large quantities of electricity.
TenneT manages the 380 kV and 220 kV grids throughout the Netherlands and the 150 kV grid in the province of Zuid-Holland. All high-voltage lines and cables are connected to one another via substations. The high-voltage grid branches off into 27 regional distribution grids. The distribution grids are operated by the regional grid administrators and transmit electricity to the end-users.
Ring-shaped structure
The high-voltage grid in the Netherlands consists of two rings: a smaller ring (220 kV and 380 kV) in the northeast of the country and a larger ring (380 kV) that more or less serves the rest of the Netherlands. Two 380 kV grids branch off from the larger ring: one serving the Randstad region and another serving the province of Zeeland.
The ring-shaped structure of the national grid has one important advantage: in the event of a power failure TenneT can continue to supply power to almost all of the Netherlands by reversing the direction of the electrical current. The ring-shaped structure is clearly shown on the grid map.
Additional ring
In the Randstad380 project, TenneT is working on an extension of the capacity of the high-voltage grid. We are constructing new high-voltage lines between the Maasvlakte industrial zone and the substations Westerlee, Wateringen, Bleiswijk, Beverwijk and Diemen. The project will create a third ring in the Randstad region, and will improve the security of supply. Randstad380 was started in 2004 and is expected to take about 10 years to complete.
Cross-border connections
The Dutch high-voltage grid is linked to the grids in neighbouring countries through five cross-border connections (three with the German grid and two with the Belgian grid). These cross-border links are called interconnections.
The cross-border links or interconnections are important, as they help to safeguard the security of supply. If there is a shortage of electricity in the Netherlands, TenneT can call upon the resources of a neighbouring country (and vice versa). This neighbouring country can in turn ask its neighbours to supply electricity. International agreements on cross-border supplies have been laid down by the Union for the Coordination of Transmission of Electricity (UCTE).
The cross-border interconnections also encourage free-market operation in the energy sector. Regional grid administrators and large companies can buy their electricity abroad. TenneT ensures that the electricity is properly transmitted.
TenneT is currently working on an expansion of its cross-border connections. In 2008, the Dutch national grid will be linked to that of Norway. In the so-called NorNed project, TenneT is working together with the Norwegian TSO Stattnet to construct a submarine cable link between the two countries. BritNed is a similar project, aimed at realising a cable connection between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. This link is currently under development.
