Sustainability in the Dutch Power Sector - Greenpeace Nederland

RWE Nederland participates in the program ‘Meer met Minder’, a joint initiative by
government, construction companies, and energy companies through which
homeowners can evaluate how to lower their electricity costs.
Essent’s demand-side initiatives in the Netherlands include:
Essent gives its clients advice and free tips on how to lower energy costs. It also offers
its clients tools to gain insight into their energy consumption and to save energy in the
long run. This is called the “BespaarPlan”. 342
Essent offers its clients the possibility to use the “VerbruiksManager”, which compares
expected and actual energy consumption and gives advice accordingly. It also offers
clients the possibility to calculate their energy consumption online with the help of
personal data such as the size of the household and the amount of showers taken a
week. 343 These services allow to become more aware of their energy consumption.
Essent offers its clients a calculation programme and advice on how to save energy
with low energy light bulbs. 344
Essent stimulates its clients to tackle unnecessary energy use by electrical appliances
that consume energy while they are not in use. It offers a calculation programme that
calculates the unnecessary energy consumption, also in terms of CO2 emissions, and
offers advise on how to reduce it. The programme is called StopContact. 345
Essent offers solar panels and boilers to its clients including advice, information about
subsidies and installation. 346
Essent offers high efficiency boilers. Clients can rent, lease, or buy them. 347
Essent compensates clients for energy that they produce themselves. Clients that
have solar panels, a wind turbine, or a high efficiency electricity-generating (HRe)
boiler and produce more energy than they consume receive compensation for the
energy that flows back into the electricity grid. 348
Essent offers ‘Groen voor Gas’, which means that for two cents extra per cubic meter
of gas, Essent compensates the CO 2 emissions of clients’ gas consumption by
investing in projects that reduce CO 2 emissions and meet the criteria of the Gold
Standard Voluntary Emission Rights, an initiative of the WWF. 349
http://www.rwe.nl/64/mijn_rwe/besparen_op_energie/epa_maatwerkadvie s (13-07-09).
342
Essent website, Thuis, Zelf regelen, “Energie besparen”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/zelf_regelen/energie_besparen_b espaarplan/index.jsp (07-07-09).
343
Essent website, Thuis, Zelf Regelen, Energie Besparen, “Hulpmiddelen”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/zelf_regelen/energie_besparen_bespaarplan/hul pmiddelen.jsp (08-07-09).
344
Essent website, Thuis, Zelf Regelen, Energie Besparen, “Duurzaam Verlichten”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/duurzaam_verlichten.jsp (08-07-09).
345
Essent website, Thuis, Zelf Regelen, “StopContact”, no date, http://www.essent.nl/pdfservice/ (08-07-09).
346
Essent website, Thuis, Producten & Tarieven, CV en Warm Water, “Zonneboilers”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/producten/CV_en_warm_water/zonneboilers/index.jsp & Essent website,
Thuis, Producten & Tarieven, CV en Warm Water, “Zonnepanelen”,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/producten/CV_en_warm_water/zonnepanelen/index.jsp (08-07-09).
347
Essent website, Thuis, Producten & Tarieven, CV en Warm Water, “CV-Ketels”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/producten/CV_en_warm_water/cv_ketel_kopen_huren_ leasen/index.jsp (08-
07-09).
348
Essent website, Thuis, Producten & Tarieven, “Teruglevering”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/producten/elektriciteit/teruglevering/ind ex.jsp (08-07-09).
349
Essent website, Thuis, Producten & Tarieven, Gas, Groen voor gas, “Wat is groen voor gas?”, no date,
http://www.essent.nl/content/thuis/producten/overzicht_gas/groen_gas/hoewerkthet.jsp (08-07-09).
RWE / Essent 62