Flexibility in the electricity system in Groningen and Drenthe: in-depth system study 2019

CE Delft has identified developments to 2050 with regard to flexibility for the provinces of Groningen and Drenthe. This study expands on the system study conducted by CE Delft for the provinces in 2019.

The use of flexible resources can serve two purposes: balancing supply and demand at the national level (electricity market balancing) and local balancing, for reducing the load on the electricity grid (grid congestion management):

• Balancing at the national level requires flexibility to ensure security of supply. This is regulated at the national level. Some of the national flexibility needs will be met in Groningen and Drenthe, but there is no clear answer about how much.
• Flexibility can help reduce the load on the electricity grid. Flexible generation (curtailment) and demand (demand-side management) can avoid grid reinforcements at low social cost. No flexible sources are expected to be implemented as a structural alternative to grid reinforcement. It is important to implement flexible sources for electricity market balancing in favourable locations to avoid a negative impact on the electricity grid and possibly avoid some of the grid reinforcements.