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Van Noord Growers, a Tomato and cucumber grower in Zeeland, is experiencing the challenges of a rapidly changing horticultural sector on all sides: demand for electricity is increasing, while the network is not yet prepared for this load everywhere. At the same time, there is growing social and legal pressure to make energy supply more sustainable and to limit gas consumption. In response to this, Van Noord is working with COMCAM to find smart solutions in the areas of energy generation, storage, and grid flexibility.
Grid congestion in horticulture: a new and growing problem
Ten years ago, grid congestion in horticulture was still an unknown concept. But in recent years, demand for electricity has also increased enormously in this sector. Many companies are switching to LED lighting and heat pumps, while at the same time more and more (floating) solar panels are being installed on greenhouses or adjacent rainwater basins.
Growers are not only demanding more power, but are also feeding large amounts back into the grid on sunny days and during morning and evening peaks when demand for electricity is higher and there is less sunlight. Jeffry van Noord is co-owner of Van Noord Growers in Sirjansland and board member of Glastuinbouw Nederland for the Brabant-Zeeland region. He explains the reason for collaborating with COMCAM: “Grid congestion is something new in that sense; it didn’t exist ten years ago. And then you also need different expertise to solve it.”
Horticulturalists often already have a high-capacity connection, but this is usually used mainly for feed-in rather than consumption. However, due to national consumption congestion, many horticulturalists are reaching their limits: they cannot always take the desired sustainability steps, such as installing heat pumps to reduce gas consumption. This makes investing in sustainability complex and can significantly delay expansion plans. At Van Noord Growers, sustainability remains an important priority, but with careful, well-considered steps taken in the right order.
Growers as an essential part of the solution
At the same time, horticulturalists can play an important role in remedying grid congestion. Because they can respond flexibly to the supply and demand of electricity during morning and evening peaks, they can contribute to balancing the grid. With the smart use of installations, such as CHP units, they can not only make their own operations more sustainable, but also actively help to relieve the pressure on the electricity grid.
This importance is also underlined by grid operator TenneT, which is calling on companies in North Holland (including greenhouses with CHP units) not to switch completely away from gas for the time being. Their installations play a key role in supporting electricity production at times when the grid is under pressure. This means that horticulturalists are not only large consumers, but also an essential part of the solution to increasing grid congestion.
Flexibility and transport capacity as a solution
The collaboration between Van Noord Growers, also known by its former name D.T. van Noord Tomaten B.V., and COMCAM began with this challenging case. Together, they considered the flexibility and transport capacity of energy. Jeffry van Noord is pleased with the collaboration: “I simply cannot solve all the problems on my own; I need help with that. COMCAM offers this help. The problem is significant because grid congestion is something completely new to us and solving it takes a lot of time and requires specialist knowledge.” If flexibility is needed at Van Noord Growers to resolve network congestion, COMCAM, as a Congestion Service Provider, ensures that it is deployed in a timely and effective manner.
“Horticulture is complex, and you have to take careful steps; we can’t do that without a partner who knows the route and thinks along with us.” COMCAM has experience with grid congestion and the region. This makes them a great sparring partner and takes work off our hands. Together, we can come up with the best solutions.” By working together to find solutions tailored to the local situation, COMCAM was able to turn a potential problem into a practical opportunity for Van Noord Growers.
Knowledge and experience in the region
At COMCAM, knowledge of regional conditions plays a major role in developing solutions. Machiel Joosse, business development manager at COMCAM, sees this in practice every day: “Network congestion is a national problem, but locally it is highly dependent on the network infrastructure and the combination of supply and demand in a region. In practice, we see that solutions to congestion often cannot simply be copied one-to-one, but are a complex puzzle in which business processes and regulations also play an important role, with knowledge of the local context.”
For Jeffry van Noord Growers, the collaboration with COMCAM is exactly what they were looking for: a regional partner with local knowledge and experience.
“Network congestion is new to us and requires a customised solution. So you look for a party that can contribute ideas based on that commitment and experience. COMCAM is such a party.”
The pressure for sustainability
In addition to the technical challenges, there is also social pressure from the community to work more sustainably and move away from gas. Sadaf Bashir is involved in this as Portfolio Manager at COMCAM. “Van Noord Growers is actively responding to this and, together with two other horticultural companies, has built a sustainable biomass plant that supplies heat and CO₂ for the greenhouses.” This plant has been in operation since 2018 and provides a large part of the energy and CO₂ requirements, without dependence on third parties. It is a long-term solution, but with a maximum capacity and dependent on sufficient biomass. “This clearly shows that solutions require customisation per region; it is not feasible for the whole of the Netherlands to switch completely to biomass.”
Sadaf continues: “Sustainability is an important priority for both our customers and COMCAM. At the same time, sustainability often entails higher costs. Major investments and technologies such as combined heat and power (CHP) and biomass power plants are more expensive than the alternative gas, and the prices of biomass and installations are also rising. That is precisely why it is important to carefully consider how CHP and biomass can be used optimally, so that both economic and sustainability objectives are achieved. COMCAM feels jointly responsible for this transition and, as an independent partner, provides support in calculating complex scenarios, performing detailed return analyses, and advising on the right choices.
Alongside this, CHPs play a crucial role in reducing grid congestion. Because CHP installations generate heat and electricity locally, the load on the electricity grid is reduced, and there is greater flexibility in the energy supply. This makes it possible to better absorb peaks and distribute energy more intelligently. In this way, CHP not only contributes to sustainability, but also to a more stable and future-proof energy grid.
In addition to the biomass plant, Van Noord Growers is also investigating other sustainable options. Jeffry explains: “We are looking at heat pumps, cold and heat storage, and batteries. And we are now actively managing our energy procurement and consumption ourselves in order to use more sustainable heat. Through this combination of measures, we want to source our energy supply entirely from renewable sources in the long term.”
Smart combinations of sustainable sources
Van Noord Growers’ ultimate goal is to obtain all its energy from sustainable sources. Greenhouses require a lot of heat, and gas consumption must be reduced. There are various options, with a combination being the ideal solution. Part of the heat is supplied by the existing biomass plant, but heat pumps, cold and heat storage (WKO) and other storage options are also being considered.
There are two options for electricity: generate it yourself or purchase it from the grid, both of which have advantages and disadvantages. In addition, the possibility of feeding self-generated electricity back into the grid or storing it in batteries is being explored. Grid congestion plays an important role in the choice of renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind or water. Flexibility options, such as thermal storage, CHP control and battery storage, are an important part of being able to take the next steps.
The solution lies in simple, small-scale technologies
Van Noord Growers is convinced that companies should be as self-sufficient as possible.
“Grid congestion is a problem, but nowadays we can do a lot ourselves: as a company, you have some form of flexible energy. That is why it is crucial that companies think about what they can do themselves and what actions are within their own sphere of influence, so that they can become as self-sufficient as possible. COMCAM saw exactly what we ourselves can influence and responded to this with a good solution.”
Machiel: “Sometimes companies can solve some of their congestion problems internally with relatively simple techniques such as more flexible use of heat pumps. COMCAM supports this process as an independent partner by analysing the current situation and working with the company to determine which steps are feasible with existing installations. In this way, COMCAM helps organisations to make independent and cost-conscious choices for feasible and affordable energy, rather than immediately opting for expensive, complicated solutions.”
Are you looking for an energy partner with knowledge of the region? Then contact us and discover what COMCAM can do for your organisation.