Almost one in three Dutch households now have solar panels on their roofs, according to grid management company Netbeheer Nederland. In total, Dutch homes now have 2.6 million panels, a rise of 600,000 from a year ago, Netbeheer said. 

Last year’s rise follows a 30% increase in 2022 which was prompted by soaring energy prices. However, sales slowed in the second half of last year and it could be that the market is slowly becoming saturated, Netbeheer said. 

Between 30% and 40% of the electricity generated via panels is used in the home where the panels are located and the rest flows back to the national grid. But the sheer volume is now causing problems, leading the government to suggest phasing out the tax break on solar power and to some energy firms charging customers for the service.

Netbeheer Nederland is also calling for the tax break to go. “It would be better to stimulate households to use more power when a lot is being generated,” director Hans-Peter Oskam said. This would mean, he said, that people should, for example, charge their electric cars when the sun is shining. 

Earlier this week it emerged that the shortage of electricity grid capacity threatens to be an increasing problem for households as well as industry and new investment is needed to stop power cuts.

The growth in the number of heat pumps, electric cars and solar panels could, in a worst case scenario, lead to problems for 1.5 million households by 2030, climate minister Rob Jetten told MPs in a briefing.

That figure is based on current grid capacity and planned investments should reduce the number of problem households by some 75%. Nevertheless, more needs to be done to make sure the grid is future proof, the economic affairs ministry analysis shows.

RTL Nieuws reported on Monday that Utrecht plans to reduce the capacity of public electric car charging stations between 4 pm and 8 pm when domestic demand is at its height.