Netherlands-based system integrator Alfen has been revealed as the supplier for a 31.6MW/126.4MWh BESS currently under construction the largest in the country to reach that stage Alfen will provide battery energy storage system (BESS) inverter technology and six 7.5MVA subsystems for the 4-hour duration project in Dronten The BESS units will provide 4MWh of energy storage per 20-foot container The system is expected to be installed by Q3 2025 and will help stabilise the grid and integrate renewables It is the same project that was announced late last year, owned by consortium FlevoBESS, investor GreenPowerBank Dronten and green energy utility Pure Energie, along with 400 local shareholders. Eneco will optimise the project’s dispatch into the electricity market Larger projects have been announced in the Netherlands but this will be the largest in the country when if it comes online this year. The current largest is a 30MW/68MWh system owned by storage developer-operator SemperPower said: “Our consortium is committed to making a real impact in the region by driving local engagement and making sustainable progress We chose Alfen as a key partner for their proven track record in developing innovative sustainable energy storage solutions and their dedication to making this project successful.” See more recent news on the energy storage market in the Netherlands here. Defense started investigating the forest after metal remains and a tire were discovered there in 2022 the Ministry also discovered fragments of aircraft bombs on site These indicate that the plan probably crashed on its way to Germany with cargo on board the municipality of Dronten told the broadcaster The remains are around 2.5 meters deep in the ground human remains were found with a gun turret that was part of an aircraft in the same area The bodies were buried as “Unknown Airmen” in a military cemetery in Nijmegen It is likely that the aircraft remains recently found belong to the same plane as the gun turret and airmen found over sixty years ago though that will only be confirmed once the plane has been recovered and its identification number is known “This also brings us a step closer to the identity of the ‘Unknown Airmen,’ and hopefully the surviving relatives will have the opportunity to get dignified closure,” the office of mayor and aldermen wrote to the municipal council about Defense’s plans to recover the aircraft “Given the special bond that the municipality has with the Airgunners we are happy to cooperate.” Dronten invited Airgunners to WWII commemorations every year Because the plane may still have ammunition on board Defense asked the local authorities to cordon off the surrounding area It also advised imposing a ban on using metal detectors in the area and setting up extra police surveillance The municipality has placed fences and warning signs around the location The salvage operation is scheduled for November 2025 including cutting down trees and removing shrubs A work area will be created on-site where excavated soil will be seived and found wreckage and ammunition will be processed and removed The project is expected to cost around 800,000 euros The government will cover 750,000 of this amount and the municipality the remaining 50,000 euros Utility Eneco will optimise a BESS project in the Netherlands that will be the country’s largest when it comes online before the end of the year Construction is underway on the battery energy storage system (BESS) which will be located beside a transformer station in Dronten linked to the Windplan Groen wind power plant where the electricity is brought together in a closed distribution system ASN Bank is financing the project via a loan while Eneco will optimise the project The project appears to actually be one of three on the same site which form the Dronter Energy Storage (Dronter Energie Opslag) project Construction was announced on that project in November last year by its owners investor GreenPowerBank Dronten and green energy utility Pure Energie A commissioning date of 2026 was announced then though it now appears it will be built in three phases or perhaps even be three entirely distinct projects The utility and trader will use the battery to balance the grid and optimise the output of the wind plant appears to have kickstarted the industry after a stagnant few years The largest project currently online stands at 68MWh, brought online by SemperPower in 2023 will serve one of Europe’s biggest supermarket chains with lettuce grown using Philips GreenPower LED horticultural lighting will serve one of Europe’s biggest supermarket chains with lettuce grown using LED horticultural lighting the only vertical farms in Europe using LED-based lighting have so far been research centres or specialist producers serving restaurants The new facility in Dronten – built by fresh fruit and vegetables company Staay Food Group – will be the first vertical farm in Europe to operate commercially The facility will serve one the continent’s largest supermarket chains in addition to being used for testing and optimising processes for future and is scheduled to begin operating in the latter half of this year The 900 square metre indoor vertical farm will have over 3,000 square metres of growing space and will use Philips GreenPower LED horticultural lighting any harmful insects or other pests will be prevented from reaching the crops – as a result no pesticides will be required in the process Staay and Philips Lighting collaborated with vegetable breeder Rijk Zwaan to carry out the extensive research required to determine the best combination of lettuce varieties and growth recipes in order to improve crop quality and yields Managing Director of Philips Lighting Horticulture LED Solutions said: “Our plant specialists at our GrowWise research centre in Eindhoven are testing with seeds of a selection of the most suitable lettuce varieties to define the best growth recipes and to optimise the crop growth even before the farm is running” Manager of Marketing and Business Development at Rijk Zwaan said: “The tests we are conducting within this project are enabling us to identify which varieties are optimal for growing in a vertical farm and also which varieties offer the best taste and texture.” Vertical farming also allows for the locating of food production close to – or even within – urban areas where food consumption is concentrated Grootscholten went on to say: “It will help us with our continuous challenge to offer solutions for the growing world population We believe that vertical farms will become increasingly important because in the future we see more economic and environmental pressure to produce fruit and vegetables closer to where end customers are located.” Farms located nearer consumers will help to reduce emissions and transport-related costs Similar facilities are also on the rise in the U.S. Vertical Fresh Farms has been farming commercially on a small scale in Buffalo New York for a few years and Aerofarms in Newark is currently developing the largest vertical farm in the world with expected harvests of over 900,000 kilograms each year A report by PS Market Research projects that vertically farmed food market will take off in the next few years generating $6.4 billion of total revenue by the year 2023 To receive similar news articles, sign up to our free newsletter here.      Worldwide, Policy Worldwide, Energy Worldwide, Climate Action Coalition, Energy Europe, Energy Europe, Policy, Energy Europe, Finance, Policy Sign up to receive free and essential industry news and updates © 2025 Climate Action. 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Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience has signed an agreement with FlevoBESS to deliver a 31.6 MW/126.4 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) one of the first large scale four-hour systems in the Netherlands the system will support the region’s ambitious energy transition goals by stabilising the grid and preparing for future expansions to 204 MWh by 2028 The agreement was signed in December 2024 and installation is on track for completion in 3Q25 This project leverages Alfen’s expertise across multiple businesses to deliver a comprehensive energy storage solution It integrates Alfen’s latest generation of battery containers which have an exceptional energy density of up to 4 MWh within a 20 ft container This design enables efficient back-to-back and side-by-side installations significantly reducing the required footprint Paired with Alfen’s largest inverters on the market these containers deliver up to four hours of discharge capability to increase demand for energy solutions that can handle longer durations of supply and demand balancing This four-hour system marks a pivotal step in energy storage enabling applications that require greater flexibility and multi-functionality these systems can better support grid balancing while offering operators the potential to run more simultaneous applications increasing the system’s overall efficiency and value Alfen’s Smart Grids team will provide a high-capacity walk-in substation to enable seamless integration with the local energy infrastructure while the energy storage systems team will deploy 6 7.5 MVA subsystems These innovations demonstrate Alfen’s commitment to delivering scalable and forward-looking energy solutions tailored to the energy market’s evolving needs “Alfen’s innovative four-hour solution optimises space and incorporates the latest safety and operational advancements to ensure greater reliability and efficiency,” Schockaert said “We’re proud to partner with FlevoBESS to introduce this innovation advancement and demonstrate Alfen’s commitment to offer scalable and forward-looking energy solutions.” FlevoBESS is a consortium of local entrepreneurs and participants from the Flevoland region united by their commitment to advancing sustainable energy solutions and fostering regional economic growth the local community plays an active role in its success creating a sense of shared ownership and reinforcing Flevoland’s reputation as a hub of sustainable innovation “The FlevoBESS project is built on collaboration and innovation across multiple stakeholders,” added Gert Naber “Our consortium is committed to making a real impact in the region by driving local engagement and making sustainable progress sustainable energy storage solutions and their dedication to making this project successful FlevoBESS is a local initiative with all our shareholders having strong roots in this region a company with strong local roots for more than 85 years we’re building a reliable energy infrastructure that brings economic and environmental benefits to our community.” Don’t miss out on our last issue of the year The Winter issue of Energy Global is out now; this issue kicks off with a guest comment from Veronica Maxted Director of Renewables at RS Group before moving on to a regional report on the current state of the renewables industry in North America This edition of the magazine also explores key topics such as inspection and maintenance With contributions from key industry leaders such as Viridien dive into the issue and see what you could learn Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/energy-storage/29012025/alfen-signs-agreement-with-flevobess-for-bess/ A new report from SolarPower Europe reveals that the world installed a record 597 GW of solar power in 2024 – a 33% surge over 2023 Embed article link: (copy the HTML code below): Already a member? Sign in here TU Delft's latest news A parking lot with solar panels where renewable energy generation electric charging and energy storage are cleverly integrated the official opening of a parking lot with 1,100 solar panels is taking place today the solar parking place will make the town hall energy-neutral TU Delft researcher Rishabh Ghotge and master's student Kaja Tegtmeier are developing a dashboard for this project with which they can accurately monitor the saved CO2 emissions of the terrain 120 cars can park at the Dronten city hall under a canopy made entirely of solar panels There are 16 charging stations for electric cars In order to provide those cars with sustainable power even during cloudy days a large battery will store the peaks in electric power together with master student Kaja Tegtmeier is developing a dashboard to provide insight into the functioning of the battery and its contribution to offsetting CO2 emissions the number of units of energy produced was used to calculate the amount of CO2 saved we are really looking at the combination of the output of the solar panels and the functioning of the battery in order to better determine the CO2 savings Kaja Tegtmeier: 'We will monitor in real time how much energy is used in the parking and how much of that energy is generated by the solar panels and how much is sourced from the grid We use this data to calculate the CO2 offset in realtime for which we have developed a new method.' In this way the stakeholders in the project are informed about the CO2 reduction through the project on a continuous basis Kaja will also make a scenario of the performance of the system in the future – in 2030 By accurately modelling demonstrating how much CO2 energy will be saved and visualising it for project stakeholders the research can inspire other governments municipalities and companies to construct solar parking lots in the future.  The parking lot in Dronten is part of the larger PowerParking project which Rishabh Ghotge joined as a researcher from 2017 The idea behind this project is to use parking spaces as efficiently as possible by equipping them with solar panels and using the parked This can be done by allowing the electric cars to feed their electricity back into the grid when needed Rishabh Ghotge: "There is more potential in the batteries of cars than just their use for transportation when the energy is needed in the same electricity grid.' In Dronten the cars will not yet deliver their energy back to the grid The current generation of electric cars is not yet suitable for this The large battery replaces this function to still provide the electric vehicles and the town hall with stored solar energy when it is cloudy weather.  The Green Village is an important testing ground for the PowerParking project Ghotge has a small version of the solar parking lot there it is possible to test what exactly happens when you want to charge an electric car Ghotge: "We need to coordinate the electrical currents properly and develop the right computer scripts for that The parking lot has to know when to charge Ghotge is working on the development of future solar parking lots.  The PowerParking project is an EFRO (European Regional Development Fund) project in which various partners are collaborating: Flevoland province The ERDF project is being financed from the Opportunities for West II program with co-financing from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Contact Rishabh Ghotge, R.Ghotge@tudelft.nl Press officer Dimmy van Ruiten, D.M.vanRuiten@tudelft.nl, 015 278 1588 Read more (in Dutch): https://thegreenvillage.org/powerparking-maakt-parkeerplaats-tot-energiesysteem/ News article Province of Flevoland (Dutch): https://www.flevoland.nl/actueel/dronten-haalt-energie-uit-parkeren  Postbus 5 2600 AA Delft The Netherlands Contact and accessibility Vacancies Reading assistant BrowseAloud Intranet Student portal Donate Disclaimer Privacy & Security The jumping bred filly Kylie Monique Terma WMwas the best selling foal at 2015 KWPN Foal Auction in Dronten This year the jumper foals took the spotlight Kylie Minoque-Terma WM (by Cornet Obolensky x Guidam) sold for the top knock down price of 16,000 euro to Irish couple Antoinette and Robert Bryan They also bought Kate Perry Terma WM (by Vigo d'Arsouilles x Cornet Obolensky) The best selling dressage foal was Kohinoor A (by George Clooney x Lord Leatherdale) Allers and sold to Ad Valk for 12,000 euro Five foals in a collection of 53 sold for more than 10,000 euro The colt Kaapstad (by Dark Pleasure x Montecristo) switched for 11,000 euro The average price for a foal at the 2015 Dronten auction was 5,800 euro More Auction News on Eurodressage Stalls for Rent at Durondeau Dressage in Peer, Belgium Exceptionally Well Located Equestrian Facility in Wellington, Florida Well-built Equestrian Estate With Multiple Business Opportunities in Sweden Stable Units for Rent at Lotje Schoots' Equestrian Center in Houten (NED) For Rent: Several Apartments and Stable Wing at High-End Equestrian Facility Stable Wing Available at Reiterhof Wensing on Dutch/German border Real Estate: Well-Appointed Country House with Extensive Equestrian Facility in the U.K. Rémi Blot Welcome to packagingeurope.com. This site uses cookies. Read our policy Hoffmann Neopac says it has received a binding offer for its metal division and is considering sale of the business unit to an international family-owned company with a strong presence in metal packaging The potential new owner would take over the production site in Dronten (the Netherlands) production at the company’s Thun site would be closed the potential sale is currently the subject of a three-week consultation process the employee committee will have the opportunity to propose alternatives to the sale and/or closure of production at the Thun site to mitigate the impact on the affected employees Further information on the potential sale is expected to be made available after the consultation process in mid-February 2025 Hoffmann Neopac’s tube was designed to negate the need for additional blisters with a 10mm diameter and a 0.30 wall thickness for 0.4ml – 2ml products with the former targeting a completely recyclable The tube is designed to be compatible with home recycling bins The ultimate guide to the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation in 2024 How are the top brands progressing on packaging sustainability? Sustainable Innovation Report 2024: Current trends and future priorities Everything you need to know about global plastic sustainability regulation Site powered by Webvision Cloud The bodies of a young couple from Poland were found in a field near the Flevoland town of Dronten over the weekend They were reported missing earlier in the week The police are investigating how they died "There are currently no indications of a crime," the police said in a statement The first body was found on Saturday afternoon near Hanzeweg The police identified him as a 19-year-old man from Poland was found "a short distance" from the first body on Sunday No train traffic is possible between Lelystad and Dronten until Sept. 15 due to the consequences of a power failure that affected part of Flevoland on Friday The damage is likely to run into the millions There was temporarily too much power on the network The power outage was caused by a short circuit and subsequent fire at the high-voltage substation in Lelystad on Friday afternoon the power should normally turn off in the cables automatically The result was that the high-voltage cables overheated expanded and in some places hung down to the ground One of the high-voltage cables ended up on an overhead line of the train at Swifterbant resulting in a large amount of power for the electricity systems of ProRail In addition to burned-out cables and switches this also led to underground damage to the relay boxes The extent of this underground damage has yet to be investigated "It may be that all infrastructure for the energy supply and train protection systems will have to be renewed over a distance of a few kilometers," according to ProRail Only once all the damage has been mapped out can the railway manager say how long the repair will take The NS previously announced that buses will be deployed between Lelystad and Dronten until 5 a.m Vandals destroyed the monument to people who died of cancer in the Koningin Wilhelminabos in Dronten. The memorial consisted of 67 glass panels with the names of people who succumbed to the disease. According to the police the perpetrators smashed almost all of the glass panels sometime in the night from Sunday to Monday The entire forest is a monument to honor people who died of cancer consisting of thousands of memorial trees and the glass monument “Pure destructiveness,” the police officers who went to investigate the vandalism said “We suspect that the glass panels were smashed with a hammer.” The KWF cancer fund filed charges of vandalism and destruction of property “The names of loved ones have been brutally erased Who would do such a thing?” spokesperson Annebel Schipper said “It is simply inconceivable that a memorial that is so supportive of surviving relatives and fellow sufferers is destroyed in such a way.” It opened a support line for surviving relatives who had questions and asked anyone with information to pass it on to the police Sign up for our daily Newsletter and stay up to date with all the latest news You are receiving this pop-up because this is the first time you are visiting our site You are using software which is blocking our advertisements (adblocker) we are relying on revenues from our banners So please disable your adblocker and reload the page to continue using this site.Thanks Marco Groenewold discussed onion cultivation and trade in Senegal at the Onion Theme Day in Dronten Born in Portugal but raised in the Netherlands he established a cultivation company in Senegal in 2011 for Van Oers (now Primeale United) The goal was to grow and pack vegetables year-round for European retail onion cultivation was later added as an intermediate crop Marco reassures that Dutch growers need not fear losing a potential export market due to their Senegalese production for the time being Marco was adopted at a young age by a family in Klazienaveen "That's where I caught the farming bug almost immediately," Marco shares I returned to Portugal to work for a salad company I loved living and working there for six years until my wife and I were expecting our third child and she wanted to return to the Netherlands to be closer to family That led me to a vegetable company supplying European retailers my role became setting up a cultivation company in Senegal to grow and pack vegetables year-round for European retail but onions were soon added as an intermediate crop." Onion as an intermediate crop alongside specializationWhy Senegal Green beans used to come primarily from East Africa but supermarkets made it increasingly difficult to fly in vegetables we can transport produce to the Netherlands in eight days by truck or about seven days by boat a significant logistical advantage over East Africa." you mainly head towards the coast," Marco continues These growers are satisfied with yields of 25 to 30 tons per hectare but their quality often leaves much to be desired Their onions are typically raised with nitrogen Shelf life isn't a priority; the onions are harvested cultivation is primarily handled by export companies We have 1,200 hectares here across different farms but around 300 hectares are used for onion cultivation for the local West African market There's also been interest in sweet white onions from Spain for about two years now Like a magnet to a hard driveAlthough the company specializes in green beans we faced another challenge: green beans are grown from October to April leaving the farm idle until October after the rainy season it was like a magnet wiping a hard drive for the staff and we had to start from scratch in October we introduced onions to keep people working and engaged." but training people with no formal education or knowledge of Western quality standards to meet desired levels took years This was perhaps the most challenging part." "It starts with negotiating with a village chief This process can take anywhere from five days to three weeks and revolves around social agreements—what you'll do for the village and how many people you'll employ you acquire land for a relatively low price with a pumping chamber at 130 meters that can pump 150 to 250 cubic meters per hour." as there's no electricity capable of operating pumping stations We use diesel generators and reservoirs to store water as a buffer since diesel supply disruptions can occur due to strikes or issues at production plants Building buffers is essential to ensure business continuity." Remote controlCultivation itself brought its own challenges "Planting begins in October with fast-growing varieties that take about 90 days as yields drop significantly after March due to the rainy season Red onions yield 60 to 70 tons per hectare compared to 80 to 120 tons for yellow onions." "Practical issues arise when deciding between importing and sourcing locally used to be second-hand imports from the Netherlands but poor diesel quality in Senegal quickly renders them unusable Seed quality was another problem; we now mostly import seed for better yields The same applies to crop protection products Regulatory processes are simpler here; we submit a list of commercial names to the Ministry of Agriculture local requirements are far less stringent." Training and monitoring growers is crucial "I visit regularly but am not based there permanently This creates a rhythm and fosters passion among workers," Marco explains "Harvesting is still done by hand because the onions aren't genetically strong enough for mechanized harvesting No threat for Dutch growers/exporters"The onions are pulled Around 1,200 to 1,400 women handle this work daily followed by men weighing and loading the produce Does the trend of foreign export companies cultivating onions in Senegal pose a threat to Dutch growers and exporters "Our onions are destined for local markets in Mali and Gambia—huge markets with growing populations it's almost impossible to provide local onions due to inadequate storage facilities and limited genetic advancements for long shelf life There's still plenty of demand for Dutch exports while we continue improving local cultivation." FreshPublishers © 2005-2025 FreshPlaza.com This website has been translated using an AI program The idea for 'Bohiem' arose on the dike of Uitdam around a campfire when neighbors Freek van Noortwijk Diane Schaub and Laura Luikens dreamed about opening an outdoor restaurant in the heart of the forest And when this concept proved to be a success in Scandinavia and Canada it was high time to make their dream come true Picture this: dining in an enchanting piece of forest near Dronten Chef van Noortwijk and team in the background preparing delicious dishes on an open fire cooking vegetables in the ground and brine (marinating in salt water) You have never been able to see fermentation up close The menu is determined by the range of wild ingredients in the area and is sometimes even taken directly from the forest Bohiem also wants to contribute to the food chain of the future by wasting as few ingredients as possible What cannot be reused is converted into fertile compost for your own herb garden an intimate dinner will be held in the greenhouse on Friday guests enjoyed water buffalo 'from the pit' - what it will be this year is a surprise after which you will spend the night in a luxury tipi and wake up with a pampering breakfast during which you will really be away from home Make sure you sign up March 20 at 12.00:XNUMX ready to score your tickets Last year they sold out like crazy… So be on time Also sign up for the newsletter so that you are the first to know about new wild plans next year A large map of the world hangs in the Flevotrade offices in Dronten which exports products including onions for their main company When Piet names all the places he has been it becomes clear that there will not be enough of these little place flags “Lots of trade shows have again been diarized for the first months of the new year,” says Piet while he traces a route from Japan to the Gulf region and then on to California they can look back on a good Dutch onion export season Most of their onions made their way to West Africa the company exported onions to India and its regular markets There was demand from Asia and Eastern Europe too “The onion acreage has risen sharply in the Netherlands in recent years,” says Piet the country’s onion sector would grow so quickly that is exactly what happened.” If it were up to Piet “There is still sufficient space in the Netherlands to further increase the area used to cultivate onions "Climate change will affect certain parts of the world," explains Van Liere "There will be more droughts in Eastern Europe and more rain in Asia and we have the know-how to protect ourselves from the weather the overseas demand for onions from the Netherlands was generally between January and June These periods are becoming shorter and shorter too the market in Senegal used to be open for nine months We have only three months in which to export our onions to protect that country’s local cultivation," adds Piet remain necessary because onion farmers in West Africa cannot store their produce Although the export season to West Africa keeps shrinking this export market was good for a total of 40% onion exporters and growers do not consider 2018 to be a representative year to use for comparison affected 2019 - 2018’s high prices meant fewer onions were sent to West African markets in 2019 Piet is looking for new export opportunities for Dutch onions too the Middle East is coming into exporters’ crosshairs more and more have to deal with a completely different culture of negotiations and agreements,” says Piet van Liere “That will take some doing.” Extra products have also been added to the company's assortment in recent years These include not only potatoes and carrots but also processed goods such as french fries and cheese also developments in onions grown overseas they are hard at work innovating their programs,” says Piet stay 20 steps ahead when it comes to expertise The proximity of major seaports such as Rotterdam and Antwerp is also a huge advantage for us.” SustainabilityBut Piet has not forgotten about sustainability It is an important theme in Gebroeders Van Liere involved with the Veldleeuwerik Foundation This is an initiative started by agricultural farmers and processing companies they want to stimulate the sustainable production of agricultural goods It is also necessary to come up with new ideas when it comes to transportation “We will feel it if we have to pay more in excise duties on petrol and diesel if people also want to encourage the shipping industry to become more sustainable,” Van Liere concludes More informationPiet van Liere[email protected]   A server in the Netherlands has been uncovered as a critical hub in an international scam operation that has defrauded tens of thousands of victims worldwide, according to an investigation by Dutch consumer affairs program Radar The scheme involves fake advertisements on platforms like Instagram featuring prominent Dutch figures such as Eva Jinek and Jort Kelder falsely endorsing cryptocurrency investments These advertisements redirect victims to fraudulent websites where they are persuaded to share personal information and transfer money The scam has generated at least 110 million dollars in stolen funds worldwide according to data from the criminal organization’s database The Netherlands ranks among the top ten most affected countries the organization has collected personal data from over 500,000 potential targets Ethical hacker Wouter van Dongen’s investigation revealed that a Russian organization is behind the large-scale operation Server logs show frequent logins from Russian IP addresses and one of the key individuals involved is reportedly trained in electronic warfare this individual builds and maintains the systems that power fake advertisements At the heart of the operation is a server located in Dronten and landing pages used to lure victims from fraudulent advertisements to fake cryptocurrency platforms enabling the coordination of the global scam The organization operates through a network of at least 25 shell companies registered in jurisdictions known for financial secrecy including Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Some of these companies were previously linked to the Panama Papers The decision to base part of the infrastructure in the Netherlands is deliberate The country’s high-quality internet infrastructure makes it an attractive hub for international hosting services The investigation into this scam will be further detailed in Radar on Monday The program will include police reactions to the findings and efforts to uncover those responsible You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience and security 06/05/2025  The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) TenneT commissioned DNV to conduct an extensive power failure investigation after an incident in a high-voltage substation the summary of which is now publicly available the global independent energy expert and assurance provider, was commissioned by TenneT the Dutch national electricity transmission system operator to conduct a fully independent and extensive power failure investigation (PFI) of the incident that occurred at the new 150 kV substation Dronten Olsterpad in Flevoland on Sept and over-heating and smoking of the feeding overhead lines DNV deployed experienced PFI specialists to examine the technical human and procedural aspects that played a role in the power failure and identify its root causes and influencing factors DNV’s team of experts observed that actions were independently performed in the Dronten Olsterpad and Lelystad substations that resulted in the short-circuit which was finally cleared by the protection scheme after 4:22 minutes A combination of human aspects and technical deviations in the protection scheme and its back-up prevented the system to switch it off instantly as expected The incident did not cause personal injuries but had wide-ranging consequences – including a power outage in the region a temporary closure of the A6 motorway and the N309 regional road and a long-lasting interruption of train traffic on the Hanzelijn railway track between Dronten and Lelystad This event resulted in the involvement of the Dutch regulator covering the complete range of power components and power systems and is a respected fully independent reference in forensics of energy systems safety is at the core of our commitment to the energy industry which we continue to help be ever more secure and efficient” Executive Vice President for Energy Systems Northern Europe at DNV.“Our experienced Power Failure Investigation experts are trusted by industrialists governments and regulators to uncover the underlying root causes of power outages and to formulate recommendations to prevent future occurrences and their wide-ranging and potentially serious consequences The knowledge we have acquired for every grid component and power system aspect through over a hundred annual independent investigations around the globe, and with access to our network of specialized facilities, guarantees that we can deliver consistent levels of quality and reliability”, added Peter van der Wielen Business Director for Power Failure Investigations Request information on the products Print this article For more information, please contact:Cecilie LoneDNV GL Veritasveien 11363 OsloNorwayTel: +47 905 81 704Email: cecilie.lone@dnvgl.comWeb: https://www.dnvgl.com Visit company profile page RS Group continues global brand unification with rebranding of Allied Electronics & Automation in the Americas to RS Login or Register Process and Control Today are not responsible for the content of submitted or externally produced articles and images. Click here to email us about any errors or omissions contained within this article View our eNewsletter Archive Sign-up for our weekly eNewsletter Advertise with us | Media pack © Copyright 1999-2025 Process and Control Today LtdRegistered in England No. 3733110 - studio44 The office of the future is located in the polder town of Dronten Its town hall uses the solar power from the car park to become energy neutral De zonnepanelen boven de parkeerplaats moeten het gemeentehuis energieneutraal maken “Do you know this clip about the lonely nut and the crowd?” said Eneco business developer Jasper Feuth endlessly droning on about how solar car parks could power their environment Until now.” Although the SolarParking Dronten has nine project parties for Feuth the realisation of a solar car park feels like a personal victory This project may show how covering a car park with solar panels makes an office building gas free and energy neutral The price for double-faced solar panels has come down considerably the project was only feasible after multiple subsidies The regular pattern of small PV units held between sheets of glass creates pleasing shadows on the cars and the parking deck 16 of which provide charging for electric cars: four charging stations with four sockets each There is also a large nickel metal hydride battery with the capacity for four Teslas (350 kWh) An intelligent energy management system optimises the energy flows and energy trade The dimensions of the solar systems are such that the town hall ensemble and the charging of the cars average out to energy-neutral over a year it produces more power than it consumes and in the winter it’s vice versa An energy unit houses the power electronics and the stationary battery Solar energy is first spent on charging electric vehicles next on the heat pumps for heating or cooling the town hall Excess energy is stored in the stationary battery or fed into the grid The charging speed for civil servants is slower there is a difference in charging characteristics for civil servants who work in the town hall and visitors The charging speed for the former is slower because the system assumes they won’t come back before 17:00 Such differentiated charging is a prelude for what may lie ahead in automotive charging strategies Energy flows in unscheduled charging (above) and in perfect balance (below) Note how in the lower graph solar production and car charging are in perfect balance Solar energy and electric vehicles can be a perfect pair if peaks in solar power production are stored in car batteries simultaneously charging electric cars may overload the power grid The same applies to large amounts of solar power directly fed into the grid But use the peaks in solar power to charge the batteries and the load on the grid becomes more stable and These peaks are what causes overloads and blackouts A smart strategy for combining solar energy and planned charging was developed by researchers in Professor Ad van Wijk’s group at the 3mE Faculty He tested the optimised scheduling of charging two electric vehicles with solar energy in The Green Village Ghotge is now also involved in the much larger set-up at the SolarParking Dronten one of the few places in the Netherlands where solar energy and electric vehicles are combined on a larger scale of 400 kW and 16 cars (A charging electric car typically draws 10-20 kW) Societal acceptance of the SolarParking is key to the larger roll-out of the concept Societal acceptance of the SolarParking is key to the larger roll-out of the concept to Flevo Airport and its business park some people opposed the idea of solar carports at car parks They feared a massive construction with a huge surface of solar panels,” says Feuth But the elegant construction with semi-transparent double-faced panels has changed their perception Feuth believes that he won’t be the only ‘nut’ singing the praise of large-scale solar car parks at Mac3PARK offices in Lelystad and Almere Do you have a question or comment about this article We use cookies to enhance your browsing experience We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze how you use this website and provide the content and advertisements that are relevant to you These cookies will only be stored in your browser with your prior consent You can choose to enable or disable some or all of these cookies but disabling some of them may affect your browsing experience Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns Hosting industry Two infamous websites – 8kun and neo-Nazi news site Daily Stormer – remain connected to the rest of the internet through the Dutch polder a 58-year-old American entrepreneur and website administrator He has to answer questions about his website ‘8kun’ an internet forum on which visitors can post messages anonymously What role did this site play in the storming of the Capitol Watkins complains afterwards in a livestream to his followers „I was interrogated by prosecutors for six hours,” he says Watkins’ website 8kun is the birthplace of QAnon the anonymous figure at the center of an extreme conspiracy theory surrounding former US president Donald Trump has made many secret attempts to purge the US ‘deep state’ of covert agents employed by a mysterious group of powerful people like Soros Only on 8kun did the real Q share his messages Thousands of believers pondered his apocalyptic predictions daily - self-proclaimed ‘bakers’ who tried to distill meaning from Q’s ‘crumbs’ When thousands of Americans stormed the Capitol on January 6th 2021 it became clear how much of the internet craze had spilled over into the real world This was symbolized by the infamous ‘Q-shaman’ standing in the Capitol in a fur hat with bison horns and bared torso 8kun was already widely regarded as the cesspool of the internet three gunmen posted their ‘manifesto’ on the site in advance of their terrorist attacks The attacks on two mosques in Christchurch and in a Latino-area mall in El Paso near the Mexican border took the lives of 75 people Only then was the limit of major internet parties met They decided publicly to no longer host or provide other services to the site 8kun soon experienced how difficult it was to remain online without their help 8kun is still online - although there are only a few routes left through which internet traffic can reach the site And one of them runs through a small village in the Dutch province Flevoland on an industrial zone located on the outskirts of the small city of Dronten sits a facility of the Dutch internet company Serverius IT Infrastructure The company also runs two others in Meppel and Apeldoorn in the east of the Netherlands the company provides its internet tenants with electricity cooling and internet for their digital rooms stacked horizontally in racks upon racks of computers Serverius’ clients run their own internet services with its reliable power grid and excellent internet infrastructure is a desirable place for data centers and the hosting industry alike But insight into who is renting the rooms is limited The standing practice in the hosting industry is to show very little interest in what customers do or who they are a limited sense of responsibility combined with complex and border crossing subletting arrangements Why risk turning away one bad customer - who potentially brings in tens of thousands of dollars a month - among the many tens of thousands good clients a datacenter can service internet traffic bound to the infamous 8kun image board go through Serverius’ data center in Dronten an American independent internet researcher Guilmette has worked tirelessly to scrub 8kun of the internet entirely he demands internet companies that pass traffic to 8kun to stop doing that: his ultimate goal is to make the site inaccessible from anywhere on the web „This work however is made much more difficult because these sites hide all the time” Analysis of the data packets bound for 8kun reveals that a company called VDSina is passing them along VDSina is a Moscow-based Russian hosting company has „super epic servers” at Serverius in the Netherlands VDSina is well-known for hosting clients that perform ddos-attacks that take down websites for spreading computer viruses and hosting websites involved with credit card and identity theft the influential internet organization Spamhaus ranked VDSina number 7 on its global ranking of bad hosters who run botnets: networks of infected computers used for nefarious purposes „In our internal database of Internet service providers where a score of one is the worst imaginable” VDSina not only aids in keeping 8kun accessible through its footprint in the Dutch data center The Daily Stormer is an infamous neo-Nazi news website They belong to the same customer of VDSina: Nick Lim a young American Internet fundamentalist with absolutist views on freedom of speech who is either 24 or 25 – his real age is unknown to the public When 8kun was largely pushed off the Internet after the terror attacks of 2019 administrator Watkins turned to Lim’s hosting company Lim had also welcomed Daily Stormer after it too was spat out by major services in 2017 The site is openly racist and antisemitic and it regularly advocates a second genocide of Jews a bullying site that organizes stalking of transgenders At least three suicides have been linked to the brigading on this site Lim confirms in terse emails that his company indeed has a presence in Dutch data centers and that he has a „strict commitment to freedom of expression and neutrality” One of the few other internet routes to these websites that remain go through the Finnish company Oy Crea Nova a newspaper with which NRC has cooperated for this article According to an article published by HS this Saturday the owner of Oy Crea Nova is under criminal investigation for tax evasion The owner was recently fined when Finnish authorities discovered child sexual abusive material on one of its devices all parties point at each other and at their customers They state that they were unaware of hosting 8kun and the other sites says on the phone he does not know a client by the name of VDSina Van Gemert however does know a customer identified by the exact same technical specifications but under a different name: ‘Hosting Technology Limited’ The company used to be a direct customer of Serverius says Van Gemert – he does not want to explain why He stresses that NRC should not be addressing questions to him He refers to MIRholding: VDSina is their customer belongs to a young Dutch-Russian pianist and internet entrepreneur Andrej Nesterenko Box in a large office building in Amsterdam he has taken over VDSina as a customer of Serverius His guess is that Hosting Technology Limited is a foreign entity of VDSina but his company offers additional services that Serverius could not provide When NRC points out his client’s reputation Nesterenko says that VDSina is a large and respected party VDSina did not respond to questions from this newspaper An hour after NRC reached out to Serverius and MIR When asked about the outage during a livestream Jim Watkins starts talking about a plot by an American journalist and a former employee for whose „capture and return” he claims to have offered a $20,000 bounty News website Vice speculates that the sites are down because of ddos-attacks caused by the recent addition of Kiwi Farms to Nick Lim’s clients 8kun and the Daily Stormer are back online but the connection through Dronten has been severed the owner of Oy Crea Nova quickly pulled the plug on the server Nick Lim angrily called and demanded his money back – just over a thousand dollars VDSina removed Serverius’ name and photo from their website as Lim tries to find a new foothold for his sites Repeatedly he is thrown out by parties after inquiries by NRC „It is time to move in quickly for the kill 8kun and Daily Stormer do manage to restore their connections to the world wide web Internet traffic to Nick Lim’s servers currently goes through an old acquaintance a Dutch hosting company where until recently the largest amount of child pornography in the Netherlands was located – the company has however dismissed several problematic customers in recent months Of all the places on earth that Nick Lim could have picked to host these hated websites he ends up back where it all started: in the Netherlands The company that chooses to transmit his data – one of three currently remaining in the entire world --- is called NForce Entertainment Serverius director Gijs van Gemert says his company always takes action upon evidence of unacceptable content he says „it should be clear by now that Serverius does not accept these kind of sites.” Andrej Nesterenko of MIRholding writes that he rejects „any kind of child pornographic material racist and terrorist content” but that his control systems are „not foolproof” He writes: „This we regret!” He claims to be unfamiliar with VDSina’s reputation and he does not want to comment on taking down 8chan and the Daily Stormer „for privacy reasons” NForce Entertainment has been relaying Internet traffic to Nick Lim’s network since this week Director Simon Shlomi Elimeleh says he will look into the matter In a conversation after the publication of this article NForce-director Simon Shlomi Elimeleh states that he disconnected his customer Nick Lim after NRC asked questions He emphasizes that NForce has a zerotolerance policy regarding child pornography material U kunt ons met dit formulier daarover informeren Berichten over andere zaken dan taalfouten of feitelijke onjuistheden worden niet gelezen Polder Potato from Dronten picked up the first Frieslanders of the season in Ouddorp this week de Jong and Anton Riezebos of Polder Potato The first crop harvested by Sjoerd de Jong were from a plot between the dykes where the early potatoes grew quickly When asked about his expectations for the new potato season Anton replied: "This largely depends on the weather there will be more than enough potatoes on the market considering the expansion in the Netherlands so the demand for new Dutch potatoes as well as imported potatoes will come quickly We sold the first boxes to Willem Dijk AGF this morning," concludes Anton Anton RiezenbosPolder Potato BVOudebosweg 148251 RD DrontenTel: 0321-336272Mob: 0634745662[email protected]www.polderpotato.nl Plukon Food Group and Staay Food Group announced today that they have signed an agreement in principle for Plukon’s acquisition of 51% of the shares in Fresh Care Convenience B.V While Plukon is known primarily as a major player in the European poultry market for the past 10 years it has also operated a production facility specialising in fresh meals in Wezep in the Dutch province of Gelderland The new partnership with FCC is in line with Plukon’s objective of investing substantially in expertise in vegetable supply chains and vegetable processing The two companies will be further pooling their resources for the purpose of sourcing ingredients and managing existing logistics channels and available production capacity the new partners will be able to improve quality assurance levels for vegetables along with vegetable processing techniques The two companies are highly complementary in terms of the product/market grid: whereas Fresh Care Convenience – which specialises in fresh-cut vegetables vegetable mixes and full-meal salads – has a strong position in the German retail market Plukon works closely with a major Dutch retailer for convenience meal solutions such as steamed meals After the fire that erupted at Plukon’s Wezep production facility in March 2017 Staay Food Group helped Plukon to continue supplying to its customers which further strengthened the already solid relationship between the two companies Both companies are marked by positive drive and a strong business sense and this will also serve as the basis for further defining their partnership with the intention being for Plukon to eventually (within a 3-year period) acquire the remaining 49% of the shares The transaction will be submitted for approval to the appropriate competition authorities and for advice to Plukon’s Central Works Council.A leading European supplier of innovative chicken and meal products Plukon Food Group has five production sites in the Netherlands one in Poland and four in France and employs more than 5,500 people The Group reports annual revenue of EUR 1.8 billion Fresh Care Convenience is a leader in the production and processing of fresh fruit and vegetables into mixes The company’s production facility in Dronten employs a total of around 400 people and reports revenue of roughly EUR 78 million the international sales and marketing organisation for fresh fruit and vegetables which are grown and  processed by the company itself For more information:Staay Food GroupMark LoojengaTel: +31 (0)6 1380 8981 Email: [email protected]  www.staayfoodgroup.com Plukon Food Group b.v.Gerda ZijlstraTel: +31 (0)38 376 6637Email: [email protected] www.plukon.com  Nova ScotiaNova Scotia identifies five areas for development of offshore windBy The Canadian PressPublished: March 14, 2025 at 1:54PM EDT Twitter feed ©2025 BellMedia All Rights Reserved Sie haben erfolgreich Ihre Einwilligung in die Nutzung von Transfermarkt mit Tracking und Cookies widerrufen Sie können sich jetzt zwischen dem Contentpass-Abo und der Nutzung mit personalisierter Werbung