Far-reaching changes are coming to the Netherlands. 'The country is being transformed,' says Henk-Jan Kooij bluntly. ‘Energy will become a limiting and guiding factor in the design of the landscape.’ To put it in concrete terms: for example, new transformer stations and charging points will be needed everywhere, even in places where there is hardly any space. ‘The impact has long been underestimated. No one had thought of this when the first wind turbines were put into operation.’
Even within the field of expertise itself, it took a while to sink in. 'Until recently, the energy transition was not sufficiently taken into account in planning decisions,' says Alexander Woestenburg, who obtained his PhD in planning at Radboud University. This has slowly changed due to a number of recent developments, including the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. But it was mainly grid congestion that forced spatial planners to face the facts. Woestenburg: 'The challenges we are now facing require the establishment of a new field of expertise. Both planners and grid operators will have to work very differently.'
Alliander and Radboud University join forces: “The Netherlands is facing far-reaching changes in the field of energy and space.”
The energy transition will change the Dutch landscape significantly. This requires new expertise with a completely different perspective on energy and space. To recalibrate the field, Radboud University has entered into a strategic partnership with network company Alliander. Henk-Jan Kooij, researcher and associate professor of Urban Planning, and Alexander Woestenburg, senior corporate strategist at Alliander, discuss this joining of forces. ‘A mutual stretching of the mind.’
Energy planning
This is where the collaboration between the Department of Geography, Spatial Planning and Environment and Alliander comes in. Kooij: 'The question now is how to get all the right information and how to bring all the issues together.' By better aligning research, education and the professional field, new professional knowledge is created. Kooij and Woestenburg use the term 'energy planning' to indicate the need to recalibrate the field. 'It would be great if this new expertise were gradually incorporated into planning, and energy planning were no longer necessary in the long term,' says Woestenburg.
Mutual expansion of thinking
Radboud University and Alliander have been working together for some time, but mainly at the administrative level. The collaboration now also has a place in education, for example with , a master's course and an interdisciplinary project within the Honours Academy. ‘This brought to light major issues that Alliander is grappling with,’ says Kooij. Woestenburg: ‘Students looked at these issues with a fresh perspective. It was a mutual stretching of the mind.’
The two organisations are also working together in the field of research. Kooij: 'For example, we look at all the different paths you can take to find a solution. In some neighbourhoods, the energy transition can be achieved more quickly, while in others, a tailor-made approach is needed. Such research leads to certain typologies of households and residential areas, where you have to ensure that the transition is reliable and affordable.'
Long-term process
Above all, the collaboration is strategic. ‘By coming together, we bring together a mix of expertise,’ says Kooij. ‘This means it is not a defined project, but much broader. It is a long-term process that constantly generates new knowledge and new questions.’
This benefits both organisations greatly, the two explain. Alliander can make good use of interns and graduates, as well as research. Woestenburg: 'Research helps us to approach things differently; it provides scientific substantiation.' Alliander offers the university a wealth of practical knowledge and experience. 'This gives students an up-to-date picture,' says Kooij.
‘The social value of access to energy is enormous. The social costs of grid congestion amount to 10 to 40 billion per year. That is the puzzle. How much freedom of choice and support do you want when you see that a uniform approach delivers greater speed?’
Synthetic data and speed
What is the main challenge in the energy transition? According to Kooij, it lies in the existing built environment. 'New buildings are already looking at things from the right perspective, but there are many issues in the existing environment. This varies from neighbourhood to neighbourhood.' Obtaining information about neighbourhoods is difficult because household energy figures are protected for privacy reasons. ‘Synthetic data can help with planning. This is artificially generated data that mimics real data. This requires research.’
Woestenburg sees a challenge in finding the right balance between support and customisation on the one hand, and speed and a one-size-fits-all approach on the other. ‘The social value of access to energy is enormous. The social costs of grid congestion amount to 10 to 40 billion per year. That is the puzzle. How much freedom of choice and support do you want when you see that a uniform approach delivers greater speed?’ Administrative clout is needed, he argues. ‘Decisions must be taken at all spatial levels.’
Pioneering role
Kooij takes a positive view of these complex issues. ‘It's as if we are redrawing the soil map, just like in 1950. In doing so, we are gaining more and more information. It's a different way of working, of making decisions.’ According to him, the Netherlands can play a pioneering role. ‘We have always been a country of gas, with a minimal electricity grid. That needs to be completely redesigned. But this applies to all countries with a historically strong dependence on fossil fuels. We can take the lead in this.’
Woestenburg suspects that the battle for space will intensify considerably. 'We are still a long way off. Many social challenges need to be accommodated in the space available.'
Speciality
With regard to cooperation, Kooij hopes that energy planning can develop into a specialisation. 'Or we can broaden it to include other disciplines.' Woestenburg: 'It will also expand further in our organisation. For a successful transition, energy and space go hand in hand.'
Text: Willem Claassen
Contact information
Get to know more? Please contact Henk-Jan Kooij. Would you like to collaborate with researchers at Radboud University? Please contact externerelaties.fm [at] ru.nl (externerelaties[dot]fm[at]ru[dot]nl).
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- Dr H.J. Kooij (Henk-Jan)
