Enexis innovates and digitalises

The energy transition is a significant challenge. To achieve a climate-neutral society by 2050, we must radically transform the energy system. For Enexis, innovation and digitalisation are essential – whether through the development of new products or improved ways of working.

Innovation

Every day, we work on solutions to the challenges of the energy transition and we provide new opportunities for our colleagues and customers through practical and scalable innovations. We discover opportunities and ideas with our customers and partners and turn them into new solutions. Our innovation strategy focuses on three key challenges to ensure reliable, sustainable and affordable energy for all.

Challenge 1: what does a future-proof energy system look like?

Sustainable molecules

We are focusing on new energy carriers – such as green hydrogen, heat and gas – that are essential to a sustainable energy system and provide an alternative to the electricity grid. As a network operator, we facilitate and implement the increasing role of these energy carriers within the energy system. Specifically, we are helping to increase the share of green gas and preparing for the distribution of hydrogen. For example, we are developing a hydrogen supply for businesses and integrating more green gas into our existing gas network. Last year, we opened a green gas booster station in Wijster and connected 33 households to hydrogen in Wagenborgen, Groningen.

Challenge 2: how can we make smarter use of existing energy infrastructure to reduce grid congestion?

Sustainable businesses

We are exploring solutions to meet the growing demand for grid capacity from businesses, driven in part by their transition to more sustainable energy sources. The main challenge is grid congestion. To address this, we are developing solutions that smooth or reduce peak demand, ensuring a better grid load distribution and a closer alignment between supply and demand on local grids. We are also examining the role of alternative energy sources, such as renewable gases, in meeting businesses' energy needs. At the same time, we are working on innovations to enhance the flexibility of our business customers. These include facilitating energy hubs, deploying battery storage, and introducing flexible contracts, such as group transmission agreements. We have gained valuable insights from our energy hub pilots in Zwolle, Almelo, and Hapert. Moreover, through pilot projects at our HV/MV substation in ’s-Hertogenbosch Noord and at Efteling, we have demonstrated that mobile batteries can help alleviate grid congestion.

Climate-neutral residential areas

How can we make residential areas more sustainable and use scarce grid capacity more efficiently? Our vision for the future is for residential areas to become more decentralised, supply-driven and more self-sufficient. This means encouraging the use of locally generated energy in neighbourhoods as much as possible. Examples of innovation in this area include promoting grid-conscious energy consumption and integrating conversion and storage solutions at the neighbourhood level. We are also working with market players on more grid-aware management of assets such as charging stations, heat pumps and other household devices with high peak power demand.

In 2024, we experimented with the Buurtnet app to encourage grid-aware behaviour in residential areas. The app provides information on the best times of day to use electricity. We have also started research into seasonal energy storage as part of Joule4Joule, an innovation programme in which we are working with various partners to create a decentralised, supply-driven, self-sufficient residential area, where long-term storage plays an important role.

Challenge 3: how can we radically accelerate grid expansion? 

Operation of the future

Enexis lays many kilometres of cables and pipes every year. How can we do this smarter, faster and safer? Together with colleagues and contractors, we are constantly looking for new solutions. Last year, we found a solution to make it easier to bend increasingly thick cables. We are investing in ergonomics and the well-being of our mechanics. After a competitive selection process, we partnered with a company to produce the bending tool. We also collaborated with our engineers to create a cable route explorer. To drive further innovation, we are running a market challenge to develop solutions that accelerate the construction of an MS station – aiming to make the process up to five times faster.

Innovating with others

We see that the best solutions come from active collaboration. In 2024, we launched a study with Stedin, Alliander and TU Delft, among others, to explore the potential for robotic work on the low-voltage grid, focusing on a neighbourhood-based approach. Together with the start-up ConXys, our network operators and contractors, we are developing a technology for trenchless de-coring and weighting of cables. We have also partnered with Eneco, Vattenfall, ANWB and Alliander on a pilot project to encourage households with private charging points to charge their vehicles grid-consciously. Market participants Iwell and CGI, in collaboration with Enexis, are investigating whether a shared network of connected (home) batteries can be managed to increase the capacity and flexibility of the local electricity grid. This research is being carried out by Hanzehogeschool Groningen and TU Eindhoven. We expect to be able to reduce the peak load on the medium voltage grid by 5%-10%.

Digitalisation

Digitalisation and the intelligent use of data and digital technologies will play a crucial role in addressing our challenges. It enables us to do more work at a lower cost and with less risk. But digitalisation is not just about collecting data. It is about using that information effectively to make informed decisions, optimise business processes and better serve our customers. Sharing data with customers, governments and partners in the energy transition is also becoming increasingly important.

Technologies

At Enexis, digitalisation includes all kinds of different techniques and technologies. Following are several examples:

Artificial intelligence (AI)

The use of complex algorithms enables us to do things that were previously impossible. It provides new insights that enhance decision-making. It makes our work more effective and efficient, although there are also cases that do not get off the ground due to poorer data quality and availability. Here are some of the ways in which AI adds value to our operations:

• We know more about the condition of our assets. We can tailor our maintenance accordingly. For example, this year, we avoided the unnecessary replacement of 77,000 smart meters.

• We can predict peak demand at busy points on the grid, enabling us to anticipate and control congestion better.

• We can detect unsafe situations on the grid.

• We are automating recurring processes, such as bill processing, and using AI to verify whether requests, such as those related to social prioritisation, are complete and ready for processing.

Enexis uses AI responsibly and safely. That is why we have developed our own version of ChatGPT and organise workshops and webinars to help every Enexis employee understand both the potential and the responsible use of AI. We have now trained a thousand colleagues in the use of AI. The experiences are positive and AI is increasingly being used by especially office colleagues in their work. Our new GenAI team focuses on applying the latest algorithms in our processes. An AI Centre of Expertise has also been set up to facilitate AI within the organisation and ensure that we use AI legally and ethically. We have established a roadmap to achieve timely compliance with the AI Act.

Extended reality (XR)

For Enexis, extended reality is a powerful tool for bridging the digital and physical worlds. XR includes technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR), enabling users to interact with digital information in real-world environments. These technologies create significant opportunities for both our employees and our customers.

With detailed 3D models of assets such as meter boxes and transformer houses, XR glasses enable us in the future to work smarter, safer and more efficiently in the field. Our first experiences are positive. XR is also becoming an essential tool in training mechanics and engineers at our training centre. It allows trainees to practice complex procedures and simulate hazardous situations in a completely safe environment.

In the coming period, we will continue to invest in XR technologies to expand their application even further.

We are not doing it alone

Sharing data and information is crucial to collaborating on the energy transition. Together with the other regional grid operators and TenneT, we will continue to develop joint data products in the coming years. One example is the national capacity maps, which were updated in November. In the coming years, we will expand these to include transmission capacity, queue information, requested capacity and grid expansion plans.