Reliable energy grid

Our impact

Grid congestion can also lead to increased electricity supply interruptions, which negatively impact our customers. These energy supply interruptions can have a significant impact on our communities. ^{(ESRS 2 para 48(a)(c-i))}Enexis maintains a network reliability of over 99.99% for more than three million customers. Our stable electricity supply ensures that households and businesses can continue to use essential services without disruption. This contributes to people’s quality of life and sustains economic activity. Moreover, confidence in our infrastructure provides a sense of security in daily life.  ^{(ESRS S4 para 10c)}A reliable grid has a broad and positive impact on our customers and society. In contrast, negative impacts related to reliability are rare and isolated. ^{(ESRS S4 para 10(b)}

Policy for a reliable energy grid

The increased load on our grid has increased the risk of major interruptions. To prevent this, Enexis implements a robust maintenance and replacement policy. We maintain a stock of replacement equipment, including components for high-voltage, medium-voltage, and low-voltage substations. We can deploy these rapidly in emergency situations.^{(ESRS 2 65(a)(b))} We also maintain a strategic contingency stock for redeployment, which we can deploy when necessary. In addition, we analyse major (and more significant) outages to identify potential improvements to enhance our reliability performance, and we conduct regular crisis response exercises. ^{(ESRS S4 15)}

The rapid growth of rooftop solar panels is also placing increasing pressure on our low-voltage (LV) networks, leading to more frequent outages. In response, we have tightened our policy. When LV grids are overloaded by feed-in from generators, we install heavier LV fuses or upgrade MV/LV transformers, where feasible, to safeguard reliability.

Measures for a reliable energy grid

To prevent the potential negative impact of frequent and large-scale power interruptions – and to reinforce the positive impact of a reliable energy supply – we are focusing on expanding our network and making more efficient use of existing capacity (see the sections ‘Expanding our grid’ and ‘More efficient use of transmission capacity’). In addition, we pursue an effective maintenance policy and invest in digitalisation, enabling us to detect faults more quickly and resolve them more efficiently.

Grid maintenance

In addition to expanding our grid, we continue to invest in maintenance, safety, and the reliability of existing grids. This includes replacing obsolete components, performing regular maintenance to prevent breakdowns, and repairing faults quickly and effectively. For example, we have extensive replacement programmes in place until 2030 to ensure the safety of the gas network. Similarly, components in the electricity grid are regularly replaced to maintain safety and reliability. ^{(MDR-A ESRS 2 68(a))} The table below shows the total expenditures (investments and operating costs) that Enexis expects to incur over the next three years. The table breaks down expenditure into grid capacity (grid expansions), grid quality (replacements), and other grid-related expenditures.

In 2025, planned network expenditure was €1,808 million. Total investments reached €1,906 million, of which €1,788 million was invested directly in our grids. This confirms that our action plans are on track.^{(ESRS 2 MDR-A 68e)} These investments are reflected in note 12 Property, plant, and equipment and note 13 Intangible fixed assets of the consolidated financial statements.

Through these investments, Enexis safeguards minimum quality standards and ensures the safety and reliability of the grids. We monitor the effectiveness of the measures taken using KPIs. See the following section for further details. ^{(ESRS S4 31(d))}

Metrics and targets: Reliable energy grid

Our grid’s reliability is monitored by the annual outage time (AOT). We calculate the AOT for Enexis Groep as a whole.^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T par 80a en 80c)} The AOT is determined by the number and results of unforeseen interruptions (failures). It represents the average number of minutes (electricity) or seconds (gas) that customers are without an energy supply in a calendar year.

For electricity AOT, the calculation is as follows: for each interruption, the product of the number of connected customers affected and the interruption duration (in minutes), totalled across all interruptions, then divided by the total number of connected customers in the relevant grid area for the year.^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T 80f)}

For gas AOT, the calculation is as follows: for each interruption, the product of the number of connected customers affected and the interruption duration (in seconds), totalled across all interruptions, then divided by the total number of connected customers in the year.  ^{(ESRS 2 MDR-M par 75 en 77a en c; ESRS 2 MDR-T 80a en 80f)}

For electricity AOT, we aim for customers to be without electricity for an average of less than 23 minutes per year.^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T 80e)} There is no baseline or base year. ^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T 80d)}The 2026 target has been increased slightly (by 25 minutes) compared to the 2025 target. This is due to the increasing load on MV and LV grid areas, which may result in more faults or a longer average interruption duration per fault.

We monitor the AOT against our target from the previous year but also against the national average.^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T 80h)} In addition to our absolute target, we want to stay below the national average. We do not have a specific target for gas AOT, but we monitor outage duration in seconds relative to prior years and take action if warranted. ^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T 80b)}

Our customers can continue to rely on a reliable energy grid. Despite several large, exceptional outages, the AOT remained within the target for this year. In 2025, the average annual outage duration was 18.8 minutes (2024: 22.5 minutes), well below our target of 23 minutes and down from 2024. The gas supply was interrupted for 70 seconds in 2025 (2024: 55.8 seconds). ^{(ESRS 2 MDR-T 80j)} This is mainly due to a limited number of major failures. The gas network is very reliable, though the annual outage duration does fluctuate widely in relative terms.