Some 9,400 companies and other organisations are waiting for connections to the main electricity grid, the Volkskrant reported on Wednesday.

The figures come from regional grid operators and show the total has risen by 50% since last summer, the paper said. 

The requests range from factories that want to stop using gas to companies that plan to install charging points in the car parks – as required by law. While home owners are almost always connected to the grid, major users often have to wait because of the lack of capacity. 

In one case quoted by the paper, a new “energy neutral” school in Veldhoven is currently being powered by a diesel generator. 

There is also a waiting list of some 10,000 companies and others that want to feed electricity they have generated back into the grid. 

Experts say the problems could remain until 2028, when more capacity is finally added to the main Tennet grid.

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 last month.

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.