Key Takeaways
- RVO is funding the SPROUT project with a total budget of €5.6 million.
- The project aims to help Dutch greenhouse horticulture transition away from fossil fuels.
- SPROUT focuses on maintaining and enhancing grid flexibility during the energy transition.
- The initiative will demonstrate Multi-Carrier Energy Hubs in a real greenhouse setting.
- TU Delft leads the consortium alongside industry and research partners.
RVO Supports Energy Transition in Greenhouse Horticulture
RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency) is funding a €5.6 million project called SPROUT, aimed at helping the greenhouse horticulture sector move away from fossil fuels while supporting the broader Dutch energy transition. The consortium project is led by Francesco Lombardi from TU Delft’s Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management (TPM).
The project addresses the challenge of decarbonizing greenhouse operations without undermining the stability of the national energy system, where greenhouses currently play a significant role.
Current Role of Greenhouses in the Energy System
Dependence on CHP and Grid Flexibility
Greenhouses in the Netherlands largely rely on combined heat-and-power (CHP) systems fueled by natural gas. These systems generate electricity, heat, and CO₂ for crop production and supply up to 11% of the country’s annual electricity to the national grid. CHP installations account for around 10% of the Netherlands’ flexible power capacity, making them important for balancing supply as solar and wind generation increase.
As climate targets require a shift away from gas-powered CHP, greenhouses risk becoming inflexible energy consumers if renewable alternatives are adopted without new system designs. According to the project partners, this could reduce grid flexibility and lead to costly investments in backup power infrastructure.
SPROUT Introduces Multi-Carrier Energy Hubs
Maintaining Flexibility During Decarbonization
SPROUT, short for System-Positive, Replicable, Optimised Urban-horticultural Transitions, seeks to address this challenge by supporting the transition to Multi-Carrier Energy Hubs (MC-EHs). These hubs integrate renewable energy generation, conversion, and storage across multiple carriers, including electricity, heat, hydrogen, and CO₂.
The concept is designed to meet greenhouse energy needs while improving the ability of the national energy system to absorb renewable power and reduce grid congestion. Lombardi described the approach as system-positive, stating: “The project will turn greenhouse horticulture into an accelerator of the Dutch energy transition.”
Demonstration and Sector-Wide Tools
From Research to Implementation
SPROUT will include a real-world demonstration at a greenhouse in Monster, as well as a small-scale pilot hosted by The Green Village. In addition to the demonstration, the project will develop tools to support wider adoption, including a web-based application that allows growers to design energy hubs tailored to their operations and blueprints for viable business models.
Consortium and Project Partners
The project is led by TU Delft’s Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management, in collaboration with the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, The Green Village, and the Innovation & Impact Centre. Industry partners include Division Q, eFuelution, Resourcefully, and WestlandInfra, alongside research contributions from Leiden University and Wageningen University & Research.
