Water & Energy network group

More than a decade of experience in energy and water research

Since 2013, the Joint Research Programme of KWR and the water utilities (Waterwijs, formerly BTO) has been studying the relationship between energy and water. The ‘Climate Neutral Water Chain’ Theme Group worked on this area at the time. In the case of topics at the interface of energy and water, such as aquathermal energy, there has been no sector-wide facility for knowledge exchange since 2018. At the time, that led to the establishment of the Aquathermal Advisory Group. That name was changed recently to ‘Water & Energy Network Group’ because, in addition to attention to heat (primarily aquathermal systems), we also need to focus on other aspects of the energy transition, such as grid congestion, that affect the work of drinking water utilities.

Knowledge base and contribution to a sustainable future

The ambition of the Water & Energy Network Group is to contribute to the energy transition from the perspective of the drinking water sector while taking the societal importance of clean and safe drinking water into consideration. The network group believes that the contribution of the drinking water sector in this respect should not be limited to its own operations but cover the entire water cycle in relation to the energy transition. The network group aims to make concrete contributions to the heating and energy transition from the drinking water sector. The members of the network group also want to establish a knowledge base for the drinking water sector.

The group is focusing on a range of strategic topics in the field of Energy and Water that are, in broad terms, organised along two lines: (1) the energy transition / Dutch Energy Act and (2) the heating transition / Dutch Collective Heating Act. Associated opportunities or obstacles in the energy transition can also be addressed as long as there is no other appropriate body that addresses these questions.

The members of the network group have the following agendas for the network group:

• Periodical meetings (remote or in person) for knowledge acquisition and exchanges about the water-energy nexus in the Flemish-Dutch water sector.
• Identifying new developments in the energy world and, if necessary, including them on the agenda in the appropriate bodies. If necessary, the network group will also publish its views externally in this regard, albeit at the personal level and not at the company level.
• Initiating and supervising projects (including research projects), whether or not in collaboration with KWR and other partners.

The members of the group will work, whenever possible, on establishing connections between their own companies, their regions and relevant networks (such as Vewin, Blauwe Netten, Stichting WarmteNetwerk, EFGF, etc.).

Status and participants

The Water & Energy Network Group is funded by the Water in the Circular Economy (WiCE) programme and its status is informal. In 2024, the Network Group consists of the following participants:

• Brabant Water – Vincent de Laat
• De Watergroep – Ortwin Deroo
• Dunea – Tom Goorhuis Oude Sanderink (electricity), Ewout Hekhuizen (heat & cold), Carlijn van der Sande (heat & cold)
• Evides – Gijs van Nes, Ljiljana Zlatanovic
• Oasen – Iris Hoefnagels
• PWN – Rob Klootwijk
• Vitens – Joost Bouten
• Groningen water utility – Theo Venema
• Waternet – Jeroen Kooijman, André Struker
• WML – Wim Lafeber
• KWR – Andreas Moerman, Daniël Bakker, Frank Oesterholt