Excellent network management

Supply reliability of the electricity grid 

In 2023, our customers were without electricity for an average of 23.2 minutes (2022: 21.3 minutes). This is slightly more than the target of 23.0 minutes. The increase compared to 2022 is almost entirely due to faults in the low-voltage network. Due to the increased number of faults, the outage duration is higher than in 2022. In contrast, the outage duration for the medium-voltage network has dropped. 

Supply reliability of the gas grid

Gas outages are relatively uncommon. The main cause of fluctuations in the gas outage duration is ad hoc outages caused by a third party, for example during excavation work, which often leave customers without gas for a long time. However, last year still saw an increase in the number of seconds for outages (116 compared to 59 in 2022). This can mainly be attributed to faults in Velsen-Noord and Culemborg. Without these faults, the average outage duration would be 40 seconds. 

Access to energy

As a network operator, we believe that energy should be accessible and affordable for everyone. Disconnections happen at the request of the energy supplier. We exercise restraint in disconnecting households that have trouble paying their bills. Energy prices have risen rapidly since 2022. This put many people at risk of running into financial problems. In late 2022, energy suppliers, municipalities and network operators made arrangements with the government to prevent this. They decided that all parties would have to make an (additional) effort to prevent people from being disconnected. Liander’s technicians, fraud specialists and office workers focused on contacting customers and explaining which options they have for (financial) support. Together we looked for a sustainable solution that allows consumers to get a new energy contract.
In April 2023, the temporary disconnection policy was changed to a permanent scheme. This has reduced the risk of disconnection due to energy poverty for lots of customers.

Preventing energy poverty

As Liander we feel the social responsibility to prevent disconnections and will continue to focus on developing sustainable solutions. We do this based on the principle that nobody in the Netherlands should have to deal with energy poverty, as we view energy as an inextricable part of socioeconomic security. Last year we launched a pilot in partnership with the municipality of Amsterdam to fight energy poverty. The municipality of Arnhem also joined during 2023. In this way we are fighting the risk of families getting trapped between the Energy Act and social legislation. In 2024 we are committed to increasing support based on this vision and intensifying collaboration with our supply chain partners to make the protection of vulnerable consumers as effective as possible. We are looking for opportunities in current laws and regulations, but also at which (legal) policy adjustments could contribute to greater consumer protection.

Disconnections during wintry weather

During extreme winter weather, we take appropriate action to ensure that everyone has access to electricity and heat. In this context, we go further than the law requires. The law states that we must stop disconnecting customers if the temperature in De Bilt (the site of the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute) drops below zero for a 48-hour period. Every week, we take a look ahead to determine whether the average temperature will be below zero in any 24-hour period. We do not disconnect anyone during the public holidays in December.