Core concepts
What is grid congestion?
Grid congestion (netcongestie) means a segment of the electricity grid has reached its transport capacity, so it cannot safely carry more electricity in one or both directions. New or heavier connections in a congested area may be delayed, queued, or refused until capacity is freed or the grid is expanded. Congestion is directional and layer-specific: an area can be congested for off-take but not feed-in, or congested on the regional grid but not the transmission grid above it.
Source: Netbeheer Nederland, capaciteitskaart · Glossary: grid congestion
What is the difference between off-take congestion and feed-in congestion?
Off-take (afname) is electricity flowing from the grid into a connection, the direction a factory, data centre or EV charging hub draws power. Feed-in (teruglevering) is electricity flowing from a connection back into the grid, the direction a solar park or discharging battery uses. A grid segment can have room for feed-in while being full for off-take, or the reverse, and Wattlas Issue #002 documented exactly this in Brabant: TenneT released 264 MW for feed-in (with a further 632 MW expected end of 2026) while off-take room closed in other parts of the same grid.
Source: Enexis, "Bijna 1.000 megawatt transportcapaciteit vrijgegeven" · Issue #002, Noord-Brabant queue rules
What is transport scarcity?
Transport scarcity (transportschaarste) is a broader term than congestion. It covers any situation where available grid transport capacity is limited relative to demand, whether or not a formal congestion procedure has started. Grid operators use it to flag areas approaching congestion, not only areas already congested, which is why a Stedin province page can list transport-scarcity figures for an area that is not yet formally in congestion.
Source: Stedin, provincie Utrecht congestie en congestiemanagement · Glossary: transport scarcity
What is the difference between a regional grid operator (DSO) and TenneT (TSO)?
TenneT is the Dutch transmission system operator (TSO), running the national high-voltage backbone. Enexis, Liander, Stedin, Westland Infra and the other regional operators are distribution system operators (DSOs), running the regional and local grid that most connections actually sit on. The two layers can show different status at the same location: Wattlas Issue #001 found several Brainport service areas with headroom on the regional Enexis grid while the transmission layer above them was structurally full. A claim about grid status is only useful if it says which layer it describes.
Source: Netbeheer Nederland, capaciteitskaart · Issue #001, Brainport
What does the capacity map color actually mean?
The Netbeheer Nederland capacity map shows a single status color per area, typically from green (room available) through yellow and orange to red (full, waiting list). That single color is the map export status, not the same thing as a dated congestion study with underlying MW figures. The color also blends the DSO and TSO layers in the "total" view, which can hide a regional-grid constraint or a transmission-grid constraint that only affects one of the two.
Source: Netbeheer Nederland, capaciteitskaart · About: verified vs map-export data
What is a waiting list, and how is position decided?
A waiting list (wachtlijst) is the ordered list of connection requests in a congested or capacity-scarce area that cannot be granted immediately. Position on the list determines who receives capacity first as it becomes available. In congestion zones covered by the ACM priority framework, position is set by societal priority category, not only by request date or connection size; outside those zones, request date is typically what orders the list.
Source: Enexis, "Nieuwe werkwijze voor stroomaanvragen" · Explainer: the ACM priority framework
Congestion management
What is congestion management?
Congestion management (congestiemanagement) is a set of market mechanisms that let a grid operator keep offering capacity in a congested area by paying or contracting parties to use less capacity at peak moments. It relieves pressure on the grid without waiting for physical expansion, and it is the mechanism behind connection pauses being reviewed rather than left open-ended.
Source: Enexis, "Maatschappelijk prioriteren" · Glossary: congestion management
What is GOPACS, and why does it matter commercially?
GOPACS is a joint platform run by the Dutch grid operators (including TenneT, Enexis, Liander, Stedin and Westland Infra) that coordinates congestion-management solutions and makes flexible electricity use tradeable. It connects businesses that can shift consumption or production away from peak times with grid operators that need that flexibility, in exchange for financial reward or improved connection prospects, rather than only waiting on physical grid expansion. For a company weighing a battery or flexible-load asset, GOPACS is the market mechanism that can turn that flexibility into commercial value.
Source: GOPACS
What is a congestion easer, and how do I qualify?
A congestion easer (congestieverzachter) is a connection, typically a battery or flexible generator, that demonstrably frees up grid capacity for others rather than only consuming or supplying it. Under the ACM priority framework, a congestion easer sits in the top priority category, ahead of a plain generation or storage connection. Qualification is conditional and assessed by the grid operator, based on a demonstrated relief effect; it is not automatic just because an asset includes a battery.
Source: Enexis, "Maatschappelijk prioriteren" · Explainer: what a congestion easer is
How does a congestion easer differ from simply installing a battery?
Installing a battery does not automatically make a connection a congestion easer. The grid operator assesses whether the asset demonstrably creates room on the grid, for example by charging during off-peak hours and discharging at peak, rather than just adding its own consumption or feed-in profile. A battery contracted with that relief effect can be prioritised under the ACM framework; one that is not documented that way is treated as a standard connection.
Source: TenneT, "Contract met Green Energy Storage" · Explainer: what a congestion easer is
What is the ACM priority framework (maatschappelijk prioriteren)?
The ACM priority framework is the set of rules the Dutch regulator ACM (Autoriteit Consument en Markt) uses to decide which connection requests in a shared waiting list get capacity first, based on societal categories rather than only request date or connection size. It applies in congested zones where operators put all new and heavier requests, households, small business and large business together, on one shared list.
Source: Enexis, "Nieuwe werkwijze voor stroomaanvragen" · Explainer: the ACM priority framework
What changed for grid connections on 1 July 2026?
From 1 July 2026, in congested Enexis zones, all new or heavier connection requests enter one shared waiting list, households, small business and large business together. The automatic capacity reservation that small connections used to receive ended on that date. Position in the queue is now set by the ACM priority framework, not only by connection size or application date, which means two technically similar projects can face different timelines if they fall into different priority categories.
Source: Enexis, "Nieuwe werkwijze voor stroomaanvragen" · What changed: 1 July 2026 queue rule
How do I read a congestion study?
A Dutch grid-operator congestion study typically states, for a named area: the aanwezige transportcapaciteit (aanwezig means the technical maximum the grid can carry), the benodigde transportcapaciteit (what is needed to serve all already-contracted connections), the gevraagde transportcapaciteit (additional capacity requested by applicants on the waiting list), and a multi-year forecast of the resulting structural shortfall. It also defines a technical grens (the point past which the operator is no longer obliged to apply congestion management) and, where relevant, the planned grid reinforcement and its expected year. Stedin's Walcheren Noord study is a readable example of this structure.
Source: Stedin, congestiemanagementonderzoek Walcheren Noord (afname), 17 December 2024
What does an "indicative" grid-expansion date actually mean?
An indicative date is the grid operator's current best estimate for when a reinforcement will be finished, not a committed delivery date. Stedin's own Utrecht page states this directly for the area 1a high-voltage expansion: the most critical work could be ready by the end of 2031 if everything goes to plan, 2033 is the expected date, and 2035 is the fallback if there are setbacks. Wattlas labels every operator timeline as indicative for the same reason: these dates move, and a project timeline should not be built on the earliest one without checking for updates.
Source: Stedin, provincie Utrecht congestie en congestiemanagement
Region-specific
Can I still get a new grid connection in Noord-Brabant?
It depends on the area and the direction. Wattlas Issue #001 found 3 of 7 studied Brainport service areas green or yellow (regional headroom) on the official capacity-map colour scale, with the transmission layer above them structurally full; Issue #002 found TenneT had released 264 MW of feed-in capacity across West Brabant, Eindhoven and Tilburg (with a further 632 MW expected end of 2026) over the same period that off-take room was closing elsewhere. From 1 July 2026, new and heavier requests in Enexis congestion zones join one shared waiting list ordered by the ACM priority framework rather than being granted on a first-come basis.
Source: Netbeheer Nederland, capaciteitskaart · Noord-Brabant region page
What does the area 1a connection pause in Utrecht mean for my project?
From 1 July 2026, new and heavier off-take connections are paused in area 1a (Utrecht city, Woerden, De Ronde Venen, Zeist and Houten) until grid expansion or freed capacity becomes available; the pause is reviewed twice a year, not left open-ended. Area 1b (Amersfoort, Bunschoten, Soest) and area 2 (Veenendaal) carry no pause, though Veenendaal still has a real off-take queue on the capacity map, so no pause does not mean unlimited room. Stedin needs 320 MW of flexible capacity across the whole province through 2033 to bridge the gap until the grid is reinforced.
Source: Stedin, provincie Utrecht congestie en congestiemanagement · Utrecht region page
Is Zuid-Holland fully closed for new connections?
No. Stedin states that almost the whole province is full for off-take, but names specific exceptions, including the Maasvlakte, Alblasserdam and the area around Naaldwijk. The Rotterdam harbour is the sharpest case, with off-take congestion stacked across the transmission grid (full since 2022), the regional grid (full since 31 October 2025) and, since 1 July 2026, three named stations (Hellevoetsluis, Europoort and Wellebrug). Stedin's 30 March 2026 update states a forecast harbour off-take shortfall of 9 MW from 2027, rising to 64 MW in 2030.
Source: Stedin, congestie provincie Zuid-Holland · Zuid-Holland region page
Does the Zeeland 260 MW capacity release apply to my site?
Only if the site sits in the Midden- and Zuid-Zeeland subnetwork TenneT named in its April 2026 recalibration, and only if it is not also inside an area where Stedin's own regional grid is congested, such as Walcheren Noord. Applicants in a Stedin-layer congestion pocket fall outside the release and depend on the regional expansion instead. The release itself came from flexible contracts and batteries, not new copper, and TenneT was still calculating exactly how much of it reaches individual waiting-list customers as of this writing.
Source: TenneT, Congestieonderzoek Zeeland afname, herijking april 2026 · Zeeland region page
What about a province Wattlas has not covered in depth yet?
A number of Dutch provinces are currently under active watch rather than covered in depth: Wattlas monitors their source pages but has not yet source-locked a full analysis, so no status claim beyond "watch" is published for them. The exact count changes as coverage expands; the coverage page always shows the current, generated total, not a fixed number written into this answer. Coverage expands region by region, on the schedule shown on the coverage page, and only once source quality is strong enough to support a source-backed Issue. A region can be requested for earlier coverage via the contact address on its region page.
Source: Wattlas coverage page · Coverage
Reading Wattlas
What is the difference between "verified" and "map-export" data on Wattlas?
Verified data comes from an official congestion study, traceable to a dated report with underlying MW figures for available and needed capacity. Map-export data comes from the official capacity map status, a single color per area, without those underlying figures. Both are useful and both appear on Wattlas region pages, but they are not the same thing, and Wattlas is explicit on every station and area about which kind of source backs a given figure.
Source: Wattlas methodology
What do "Issue published", "Data page live" and "Under active watch" mean?
"Issue published" means at least one source-locked Wattlas Issue covers the region. "Data page live" means the region's status page carries source-backed figures, with an Issue in preparation. "Under active watch" means Wattlas monitors the region's source pages but has not yet source-locked its data for publication. These are the only three public coverage states Wattlas uses (a fourth, "draft", is internal and never shown publicly), and the coverage page is generated directly from them.
Source: Wattlas coverage page · Coverage
Does Wattlas guarantee capacity for my project?
No. Wattlas is not legal advice, not connection advice, and not a real-time grid operations feed, and it does not guarantee capacity or availability for any specific connection or project. Whether power is actually available for a given application is determined by the grid operator's own technical assessment, not by this analysis. Wattlas exists to make the published, dated evidence easier to screen against before that assessment happens.
Source: Wattlas methodology
How often is Wattlas data updated?
Every region page and Issue carries an explicit date, either an "as of" date on region data or a published date on an Issue, so a reader always knows how current a figure is. Wattlas checks its Netherlands region sources on a recurring schedule and republishes an Issue only when a change is confirmed against a primary source; a figure without a visible date should not appear on the site at all.
Source: Wattlas methodology
Why does Wattlas keep the original Dutch source names and terms?
Grid capacity data in the Netherlands is published in Dutch, across many separate sources, on different schedules. Wattlas interprets that material in English but keeps the original Dutch term, grid-operator name and official document title next to the English explanation, so a reader can go back to the primary source and confirm the claim directly, rather than trusting a translation on faith.
Source: Wattlas methodology