Eneco, the electricity and gas supplier, wants to become climate neutral by 2035. To achieve this goal, the energy company wants to move away from natural gas, among other things. They also depend on their customers for that.
Eneco is a Dutch group also active in Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. In our country, the company has almost half a million customers, the majority of whom buy electricity and natural gas.
The whole group now intends to be completely carbon neutral by fifteen years to 2035. Not only in its own activities, which are good for investing billions, but also in providing energy to customers.
To achieve the latter, Eneco wants to move away from natural gas. For example, it will stop selling gas boilers by 2025 at the latest and wants to offer customers sustainable alternatives, such as electric or hybrid heat pumps and hydrogen-ready boilers. The company also wants to provide “accessible financing,” not just for heat pumps, for example, but also for insulation. Eneco hopes to be able to turn off the gas tap by 2035.
The energy company understands that it will be difficult, especially in Belgium, to get consumers away from natural gas. Ron Witt, director of the energy transition at Eneco Group, points to, among other things, the relatively low tax levied in Belgium on fossil fuels. He therefore expects the government to take measures that “make it attractive to switch in Belgium as well”.
If phasing out natural gas supplies to customers by 2035 doesn’t work, Witt will first look at green gas as an alternative. “But if that also doesn’t work, we’ll look at carbon dioxide offset.”
Eneco says it is not afraid that discouraging natural gas will intimidate customers. “We firmly believe that the customers who chose us consciously chose green energy and will continue to work with us,” says Jean-Jacques Delmy, CEO of Eneco Belgium.
Eneco is a Dutch group also active in Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. In our country, the company has almost half a million customers, the majority of whom buy electricity and natural gas. The whole group now intends to be completely carbon neutral by fifteen years to 2035. Not only in its own activities, which are good for investing billions, but also in providing energy to customers. To achieve the latter, Eneco wants to move away from natural gas. For example, it will stop selling gas boilers by 2025 at the latest and wants to offer customers sustainable alternatives, such as electric or hybrid heat pumps and hydrogen-ready boilers. The company also wants to provide “accessible financing,” not just for heat pumps, for example, but also for insulation. Eneco hopes to be able to turn off the gas tap by 2035. The energy company recognizes that it will be difficult, especially in Belgium, to persuade consumers to stay away from natural gas. Ron Witt, director of the energy transition at Eneco Group, points to, among other things, the relatively low tax levied in Belgium on fossil fuels. He therefore expects the government to take measures that “make it attractive to switch in Belgium as well”. If phasing out natural gas supplies to customers by 2035 doesn’t work, Witt will first look at green gas as an alternative. “But if that also fails, we’ll look at carbon dioxide compensation.” Eneco says it is not afraid that discouraging natural gas will intimidate customers. “We firmly believe that the customers who chose us consciously chose green energy and will continue to work with us,” says Jean-Jacques Delmy, CEO of Eneco Belgium.
