A 12-year-old boy has been apprehended after a car chase that started in the Limburg city of Hasselt and ended the village of Knegsel in the Dutch province of North Brabant The news of the car chase involving the exceptionally young joyrider has been reported by several Dutch media outlets Officers from the Lommel Local Police Service were the first to give chase They were joined by Dutch police once the boy had crossed the border there is not much information about the incident that happened on Thursday evening it is not clear whether the boy is Belgian or Dutch What we do know is that he took the car in Hasselt and drove north where officers from the Lommel Local Police Service attempted to stop him the boy drove on and the chase continued over the border The boy is reported to have driven the car for around an hour Several other vehicles were reportedly damaged by the young joyrider The boy has been handed over to the Belgian police and the Limburg public prosecutor's office has opened an intervention into the joyriding incident Sustainability - The zinc factory in Budel-Dorplein is ready for a new phase of life from environmental risk to friend of Natuurmonumenten Right on the spot where metals are now being processed using the energy that equals the needs of the whole city of Eindhoven in a few years time the solution must become visible for major issues such as energy storage and sustainable mobility All this in a 100% energy-neutral and circular way Metalot3C) and Jan Vlassak (Metalot3C) agree on that But the unique opportunities in Budel-Dorplein together with the support of parties such as the province Natuurmonumenten and the municipality of Cranendonck have nevertheless won them over to take the steps needed even though there is still a six-week consultation round to bridge.” Denis emphasizes that he is not concerned with selling the land he has at his disposal as quickly as possible “We need to have the right companies so that synergies can be created.” But what is ‘synergy’ in this respect We are looking for companies that can connect to this in a sustainable way And it doesn’t have to be all right away If we can connect a few new companies every year Part of the Nyrstar site has been renamed Metalot Circularity Center Cranendonck (Metalot3C) Philip de Goey and Jan Vlassak are going to make sure that the dream of Denis will be realized “The central idea is: organizing everything in such a way that you will only use and supply completely sustainable energy” who is professor and dean at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the Eindhoven University of Technology “Jan Vlassak and I started this two years ago We have developed a vision that is leading the way Everyone is excited about it and that’s why we ourselves became increasingly driven.” Metalot 3C wants to drive and support the innovations needed to achieve 100% sustainability and 100% recyclability tea we are going to scale up the ideas that are now being put forward at the universities – primarily in Eindhoven but also at other universities – from a lab set-up to a factory setting.” One of the leading themes in this respect is energy storage we want to completely link energy supply and demand Because you don’t need the same amount of energy at all times We also think that batteries solve part of that problem ships and airplanes it is really different a large truck: as a replacement for 700 liters of diesel you need about 25 tons of batteries; that will not work.” De Goey does not limit the activities of Metalot 3C to the main site of Nyrstar De Goeij: “Once upon a time that was the social meeting center of the village but we are going to turn it into a very futuristic place the drawings for which are already there.” The idea is that a wide range of partners will connect to Metalot has already shown an interest.” In addition De Goeij believes that it is more than logical to have a series of student teams to join Metalot which is working on a formic acid powered car which wants to build an engine on iron powder.” we expect to host 10 researchers and 20 students this will have to grow to at least 100 researchers and 200 students of all levels” Vlassak sees a lot of room for educational activities “It’s necessary to secure the future of good education in this region actually at all levels we want to offer education opportunities with an emphasis on sustainability right here in Cranendonck.” As far as Vlassak is concerned this also means that there will be a separate school building Soon more about the role of Natuurmonumenten on Metalot Almost 100 Dutch residents have invested in one of the largest solar farms in the Netherlands raising EUR 250,000 in just six weeks as part of a successful crowdfunding campaign raised through Rabo&Crowd (a joint initiative between Rabobank and Nxchange) are to part refinance the 44 MW Budel solar farm which already provides clean power to the equivalent of 12,500 homes after being connected to the grid in November last year the 96 new investors are made up of local residents of Cranendonck and members of the wider Dutch public who can expect to receive interest payments every six months over a five-year term in exchange for their contribution in addressing climate change and accelerating the transition to renewable energy in the Netherlands Solarcentury said: “The energy mix in the Netherlands is evolving every day with solar becoming an increasingly popular choice for both investors and the wider public thanks to the falling cost of new solar technology and growing demand to tackle the global climate crisis “As the Netherlands further develops its solar capacity Budel solar farm is a great example of what can be achieved on a national scale; both in terms of producing significant amounts of renewable energy for the grid while creating exciting opportunities for the general public to contribute to their country’s clean energy transition This is just the beginning of opportunities for the public to invest in our low carbon future." executive vice president Strategy & Innovation Rabobank added: “This solar farm really exemplifies our mission at Rabobank: Less impact on nature grounded in society – ‘growing a better world together’ We are incredibly proud of this crowdfunding campaign which not only demonstrates the opportunity solar provides for consumer investment but also the public appetite for positive investments that deliver good returns while benefiting society and the environment.” CEO of Encavis AG added: “We are pleased to show our commitment to the Dutch Energiewende by investing in Budel the largest solar farm in our portfolio so far.” The project was developed in collaboration with the Dutch province of Noord-Brabant and the community of Cranendonck and is built on land previously used by the Nyrstar zinc smelter. Greg Belland General Manager Nyrstar Budel said:  “We're proud to support one of the largest solar parks in The Netherlands Besides the fact that we are one of the most energy efficient smelters this park demonstrates our wider commitment to the transition to a sustainable future.” (HCN) Stay informed, get our free newsletter twice a week. 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The pv Europe editorial team offers their own analysis and discusses current topics with experts. 2020 Photo: Justice ministryPhoto: Justice ministryPlans to discourage asylum seekers from safe countries from coming to the Netherlands will only force them into the illegal circuit and could hurt people who really need asylum The new measures are aimed at asylum seekers from countries such as Morocco and Algeria who stand little chance of getting a residence permit and who are putting too much pressure on the system Junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol said on Monday she plans to set up two centres for no-hope asylum seekers Asylum seekers from countries deemed safe will be provided with meals and toiletries and their asylum applications will be processed within a month They will also have to report to asylum centre coordinating body COA every day and will be searched on entering and leaving the centres LGBTI people and unaccompanied minors will not fall under the new rules The plans have drawn both praise and criticism. ‘For the first time we’re tackling the problems on this side of the asylum procedure. People from safe countries come here for the allowance and a roof over their heads but these are meant for people who really need them,’ Westerwolde mayor Jaap Velema told broadcaster NOS The criminal activity which some of the asylum seekers are involved in ranging from intimidation to theft to more serious crimes is causing public support for genuine asylum seekers to go down asylum lawyer Flip Schüller said the plans won’t make much difference ‘Troublemakers will come anyway,’ he said ‘They will stay at the centre for a bit and then disappear into the illegal circuit I understand the government’s wish to tackle people who cause trouble but the measures should be aimed at keeping order And just because the Netherlands says a country is safe doesn’t mean a person’s personal situation can’t give them the right to asylum.’ Refugee organisation Vluchtelingen werk said the proposal ‘illustrates the impotence of the junior minister to tackle the real problem – the inordinate amount of time people have to wait to get their asylum application processed.’ She should also be aiming her efforts at establishing a proper European agreement with the countries of origin about returning people from safe countries We could not provide the Dutch News service without the generous support of our readers Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day Many thanks to everyone who has donated to DutchNews.nl in recent days We could not provide this service without you Please help us making DutchNews.nl a better read by taking part in a short survey A 19-year-old woman was groped by a man after she fell asleep on the train between Lelystad and Almere on Tuesday evening intervened by calling emergency services and looking for a conductor The man and two of his associates were arrested at Almere station The witness and the conductor approached the man "The traveler was then threatened by the man and two other men who were in his company." The police were able to arrest the three when the train arrived in Almere It concerns two men from the municipality of Cranendonck and a 27-year-old man from the municipality of Westerwolde Police are looking for witnesses to the incident A spokesperson for the NS said it is "terrible" what happened to the 19-year-old passenger police also announced on Wednesday that they arrested a suspect on Monday for another assault on a train It concerns a 40-year-old man from Den Helder who is accused of harassing and assaulting a 19-year-old woman for 40 minutes on May 23 in an otherwise empty train car during a trip from Amsterdam Centraal to Alkmaar She was only able to leave the train at Alkmaar station to ask for help The police tracked the man using CCTV footage The man has since been released from detention The 19-year-old victim has also been informed of the arrest A spokesperson for the national railway company called it "good news" that a suspect was detained the NS has had a telephone number (06-13181318) that train passengers can use when they feel unsafe or experience nuisance This can be reported this via WhatsApp or SMS and is sent directly to the NS control center It is not known whether new safety measures will be taken as a result of the incidents The NS said it first wants to await the outcome of the police investigations