The Netherlands should either scrap the tax on energy or drastically reform it, to encourage a transition to sustainable energy sources, the head of Vattenfall Nederland (formerly Nuon) has told the Financieele Dagblad.

Martijn Hagens told the paper in an interview that rising energy bills are dampening consumers’ enthusiasm for change. ‘All they see is their bills going up,’ Hagens said. ‘But if you look at your energy bill, you see tax accounts for the greatest share.’

The government is increasing the tax on gas in an effort to phase out its use and encourage people to switch to more sustainable energy sources for heat and for cooking.

But this, Hagens said, means that consumers feel they are carrying the cost of the energy transition process. The tax on energy was first introduced to encourage people to use less gas and electricity, he points out. The money raised flows into the treasury and is not specifically used to help pay for the transition process.

‘Is it helping the consumer or is it bolstering the treasury?’ he said. ‘Get rid of the tax then.’

Energy bills are likely to go up by a further €60 a year in 2020 because of higher taxes on gas, according to home owners lobby group VEH earlier this month.

The average Dutch household is paying €334 more a year for gas and electricity in 2019 following tax increases introduced on January 1, the national statistics office CBS said earlier this year.