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"The government is demolishing the wells to prevent a future government from reconsidering its decision to stop producing gas." As well they should. This count
by CalRobert 1mo ago
"The government is demolishing the wells to prevent a future government from reconsidering its decision to stop producing gas."
As well they should. This country should be electrifying much, much faster. A place literally below sea level is more invested in stopping climate breakdown than most. Sadly the way they're going about it is really a bad hack, and encourages prolonged gas dependency by subsidizing "hybrid" heat pumps (that still require a gas boiler).
I installed heat pumps last spring and it is frustrating that they didn't qualify for any subsidy because they also happen to be air conditioning. And while I might have been able to get a subsidy for an induction hob, there wasn't much point because the one I got for <€200 has been great, and plugged in to a normal outlet. The only trade off is that I can't run all the burners on max power at the same time, and boiling water is _slightly_ slower then when I had a 6kw one.
Hot water is still an issue though. Heat Pump water heaters seem almost unheard of, and I also worry that if I rip out the radiators and the legacy CV Ketel (which I both hate) then it would affect insurability and resale.
- deleted 1mo ago[deleted]
- eecc 1mo agoDon’t expect anything to be decided by this cabinet. Springtime elections are pretty certain IMHO
- CalRobert 1mo agoHopefully we get much better renewables support (and with it lower public transit fares...), fixes for the insane box 3 rules due to come in to effect, yimby reforms to let people actually build homes in cities, and the right to air conditioning enshrined in law...
- eknkc 1mo ago> As well they should. Assuming there is no pressing reason and the wells are dormant, why would it be a good idea to destroy options? I did not fact check these claims though. Maybe there are other reasons to close them. But if it is solely do remove them from equation altogether, it is stupid.
- jaggederest 1mo agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precommitment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precommitment
- InsideOutSanta 1mo agoPresumably, if technology advances to the point where it is safe to burn fossil fuels again, it will also advance to the point where cement won't stop people from accessing the gas wells.
- watwut 1mo agoLooking where USA is and where some EU countries may he going soon (not sure yet, but the risk is there) ... that is why.
- tsimionescu 1mo agoBurning fossil fuels is not a real option, it is a threat to all of humanity that it is horrendous we are not doing more to stop.
- CalRobert 1mo agoI agree, if we were run by people good at weighing short vs long term decisions, but we often are not. That being said, I do worry that that outcome of this isn't "stop using gas" but "keep using American LNG", which would be worse.
- toomuchtodo 1mo agoContinuing to rely on fossil fuels or use them as a backup is not a serious option. More Fucked Today Than Yesterday - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49441781 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49441781 - August 2026 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49425005 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49425005 (citations)
- blitzar 1mo ago> "The government is demolishing the wells to prevent a future government from reconsidering its decision to stop producing gas." Should there be a reconsideration - they could of course always just drill new wells into the known, proven resource. If they mothballed the existing wells for a few years they would probably need to anyway, or spend piles of money keeping them viable.
- rebolek 1mo ago> As well they should. Because pouring millions of tons of concrete to the ground is very environment friendly.
- teekert 1mo agoThe subsidies are a scam that make construction companies more wealthy, there has hardly been a drop in the price you eventually pay imho. I insulated my entire house myself... No subsidy. Ah well, it is more comfortable (though partly we are exchanging the ability to stay warm in winter with that of staying cool in summer), but to say I really notice that we use much less gas... Not really actually. Strange right? I expected much more from it.
- CalRobert 1mo agoInsulation helps with both staying warm and cool, though. After all, a big foam beer cooler is just a hollow box of insulation. I think for a lot of Dutch houses the real issue is draftiness. No amount of insulation fixes that. Hell, the windows have required vents that can't really be closed properly installed per code. I thought the previous owners were quirky but then noticed _all_ the houses have these weird vents at the top of some windows.
- anon48293 1mo agoYep. Forced to insulate but also have ventilation which undoes the isolation. Also isolation is great unless you open a window xD
- teekert 1mo agoYes but... check the CO2 levels when you close the vents, and watch the water flow from your windows, and see the mold grow on the north wall. Also, isolation keeps out the heat... Until it is inside, then it keeps it there. I agree it makes air condition more economical, but not many people have them (yet, it's booming).
- CalRobert 1mo agoTrue, if your house is actually hotter than outdoor temps (so in the evening if your house was roasting all day). Awnings and window shades are really important here. It's insane we don't have every south facing window with an exterior cover.
- dismalpedigree 1mo agoThe gas is primarily used to generate electricity. Where do you suggest the electricity for their electrification comes from?
- jimnotgym 1mo agoMythical future technology it seems
- surgical_fire 1mo agoNuclear, wind and solar are all pretty old at this point. Hell, Nuclear is 1940's technology. Are you telling me that the famously industrious Dutch are unable to produce energy without pumping gas out of Groningen?
- CalRobert 1mo agowind, solar, batteries, perhaps nuclear.
- citrin_ru 1mo agoDestroying own wells only to import gas does nothing to reduce the carbon footprint (it's actually increases it if you'll account emissions from LNG tankers). Efforts should be directed into non-carbon generation and electrification. And if it will be competitive there will be little incentives for the next government to restart the production.
- raverbashing 1mo agoCool, did you let China know about it? Other "fun fact" it seems the Netherlands uses gas cooktops much more than other European countries.
- CalRobert 1mo agoYeah, they're pretty close-minded about cooking. In more ways than one.
- fmajid 1mo agoMy parents in France replaced their 40 year old gas boiler with a heat pump 5 years ago, half subsidized by the government, then replaced their gas range with induction and got rid of gas altogether. This includes hot water (using a tank). They pay less thanks to France’s cheap nuclear power, help wean the country off foreign energy from unreliable or hostile countries and does good for the environment. What’s not to like?
- fransje26 1mo agoYes, but contrary to the Netherlands, France has an electrical network that is able to cope much better with the demand of heat pumps, as many houses have traditionally been heated by electricity. If anything, using more energy-efficient heat pumps might even decrease the load on the network.
- okanat 1mo agoEuropean grid is linked together. That's one of the significant points of single market. Netherlands can use French electricity.
- fransje26 1mo agoNo, the problem is that the Dutch grid cannot cope with its own internal demands. https://dutchtimes.nl/business/connection-ban-in-utrecht-signals-potential-power-issues-nationwide/ https://dutchtimes.nl/business/connection-ban-in-utrecht-sig... https://nltimes.nl/2026/02/12/grid-operator-warns-overload-utrecht-gelderland-flevoland-stop-new-homes https://nltimes.nl/2026/02/12/grid-operator-warns-overload-u... https://nos.nl/artikel/2611522-vol-stroomnet-utrecht-is-een-bittere-pil-waardeloos-dat-afsluiting-nodig-is https://nos.nl/artikel/2611522-vol-stroomnet-utrecht-is-een-...
- CalRobert 1mo agoHaving just added airco in NL I do worry about this - I actually suspect we could get a _long_ ways with more intelligent timing around power use. Your car can wait to charge while your hob boils a pot of water, etc. House batteries can help a lot with this too of course.
- surgical_fire 1mo agoI have a heat pump system, the hot water works alright. The only minor issue is during winter months, if the daughter and the wife shower one right after the other, it takes some 40 minutes for the boiler to have hot water again.
- CalRobert 1mo agoIs this a heat pump water heater? That's interesting since they should have a very large tank but also take more than 40 minutes to heat up, usually. A backup resistive element could make this faster of course.
- surgical_fire 1mo agoIt is. It serves both for heating the radiators and for the warm water in the sinks/shower/dishwasher/laundry, but I understand both to be separated systems fed by the same heat pump. The boiler is not huge, but it has enough water for 2 or 3 people showering in a row, depending on how quickly that happens and what other things sre using hot water now. It doesn't take super long to have hot water again, but it depends on how cold it is outside. On colder days it obviously take longer.