Germany is aiming for direct participation in electricity grid operators

Frankfurt, Berlin, Dusseldorf According to negotiating circles, after years of standstill, talks between Germany and the Netherlands about the financing of power lines are starting to move. These are indispensable in order to be able to bring the electricity generated on the high seas to the industrial regions. So-called offshore wind power is to be greatly expanded in the coming years.

Negotiations on how the billions of euros in investments by the network operator Tennet should be managed were resumed in autumn after a two-year break. Tennet is owned by the Dutch state. Contrary to the government’s original plans in The Hague, direct participation by Germany is also under discussion, several people familiar with the negotiations told the Handelsblatt.

The federal government has an interest in the talks being concluded quickly, ideally in the summer. However, there is no fixed timetable.

Tennet is building important power lines with the South Link and South East Link