North Holland Accelerates Smart Energy Hub Deployment to Unlock Grid Capacity
Haarlem, Friday 23 January 2026
ROM InWest is now guiding 21 Smart Energy Hubs across North Holland, enabling businesses to bypass critical grid congestion by collectively sharing energy capacity and infrastructure.
Strategic Coordination and Pilot Schemes
Paul Hauptmeijer, the Smart Energy Hubs quartermaster at ROM InWest, confirms that 21 hubs are currently receiving active guidance from provincial directors as of today, 23 January 2026 [1]. These initiatives represent a complex collaboration between companies, municipalities, and grid operators designed to optimise existing infrastructure rather than solely awaiting new grid construction [1]. The operational backbone of these hubs is the Group Transport Agreement (GTO), a regulatory mechanism currently being offered in a pilot format that is scheduled to run until the end of 2026 [1]. This framework allows industrial clusters to manage their collective load, a critical capability for maintaining the region’s economic momentum.
Integrating Advanced Energy Hardware
Beyond the immediate logistics in Purmerend, the Bollenstreek region is witnessing a concerted push for advanced hardware integration. A coalition comprising Circulair West, the Economic Board Duin en Bollenstreek, and Rabobank has issued a formal call to local mayors and aldermen for the realisation of two dedicated Smart Energy Hubs [2]. These facilities are proposed for the northeast (Hillegom/Lisse/Teylingen) and the southwest (Katwijk/Noordwijk) of the region [2]. The vision for these hubs extends beyond simple grid management; they are designed as sophisticated systems that aggregate and smartly distribute power from diverse sources, including hydrogen production units, battery storage systems, wind energy, and geothermal installations [2].
Securing the Future for High-Tech Innovation
The ultimate objective of alleviating grid congestion is to safeguard the business climate for the province’s most advanced sectors. Hauptmeijer emphasises that when large consumers lower their peak demand, critical grid space is created for start-ups, scale-ups, and innovative SMEs [1]. This capacity is vital for power-intensive industries such as High-Tech Systems and Materials (HTSM), robotics, and quantum computing hardware, which require stable and substantial energy supplies to operate precision equipment [GPT]. By unlocking this capacity, the region aims to ensure that dual-use technology manufacturers and other industrial innovators can expand without being throttled by grid limitations [GPT]. As Hauptmeijer asserts, the financing for these initiatives “will come to the table anyway,” underscoring the inevitability of this transition for North Holland’s economic resilience [1].