Energy Storage Market Research 2025: Netherlands must accelerate to avoid missing opportunities
Energy storage is the missing link in the energy transition. Without large-scale deployment of batteries, heat buffers and hydrogen storage, the Netherlands risks falling behind in Europe and becoming more dependent on foreign players. This is evident from the Market Research Energy Storage 2025, conducted by Energy Storage NL and Ecorys.
By 2024, for the first time, more than half of the electricity in the Netherlands will be renewable. An important milestone, but at the same time we see a harsh reality: thousands of businesses are waiting for a grid connection, wind and solar farms have had to be shut down regularly, and dependence on gas power plants remains. Without acceleration in flexibility and energy storage, renewable energy is unnecessarily wasted and investments in solar and wind come under pressure.
Growing market, but Netherlands lags behind
European flexibility demand will grow by a factor of five over the next decade, to 1,608 TWh per year - a market worth hundreds of billions of euros. The Netherlands has strong knowledge and innovative players, but lacks clear national targets and a strategy for storage. This creates uncertainty among developers, investors and governments.
- The Dutch battery market grew to 1 GWh of storage capacity in 2024. For 2025, 2.1 GWh is expected, with more than 15 GWh of projects on the shelf. But realization is highly uncertain.
- Heat storage shows great potential, from small-scale systems in homes to collective buffers in district heat grids and industry. Yet scaling up is stalled by high investment risks and slow permitting procedures.
- For the long term, molecule storage, such as hydrogen, is essential to accommodate seasonal fluctuations. But here again, high costs and uncertain policies are putting brakes on the market.
Call for acceleration
In countries such as Germany, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom, national programs and storage tenders are taking off. The report shows that with a national ambition and focused investment strategy, the Netherlands can turn its knowledge position into economic clout.
The report therefore ends with a clear appeal: The Netherlands is at a tipping point. With direction and policy for energy storage, we can accelerate the energy transition while ensuring economic growth by connecting more companies. With targeted action, energy storage can become an economic and systemic success factor, strengthening security of supply, lowering costs and paving the way for a CO₂-free electricity system.
"Energy storage is no longer an option, but a necessity. This study shows where we are now, where the bottlenecks are and - above all - where the opportunities are. If we seize these opportunities, the Netherlands can not only accelerate its own energy transition, but also take a leading role internationally." - Jeroen Neefs, director of Energy Storage NL
Order Market Research 2025 here
Download here the summary by chapter of the Market Research.
