KPN, the Dutch telecoms group, has signed a 15-year contract to buy power from Eneco's Kabeljauwbeek solar farm. The solar farm is new. The land is not. Its 88,000 panels sit beneath five wind turbines that are already part of the existing Kabeljauwbeek wind farm, and the contract KPN signed reflects that shared site.
Key takeaways
- Eneco signed a 15-year power purchase agreement with KPN for the Kabeljauwbeek solar farm in the Netherlands, announced on 16 May 2024, under which KPN buys more than 47 GWh a year from 2025.
- The Kabeljauwbeek solar farm in Woensdrecht, Noord-Brabant, has a capacity of 51 MW and about 88,000 solar panels installed beneath the five turbines of the existing Kabeljauwbeek wind farm, with full operation expected by early 2025.
- The KPN and Eneco PPA uses a pay-as-nominated mechanism, under which KPN must match its energy purchases with the renewable production available from the solar and wind farms.
- KPN expects the Kabeljauwbeek PPA, solar panels on 40 of its technical buildings and future supply from the Ecowende offshore wind farm to take it above 60 percent sustainable electricity by 2027.
- KPN's 51 MW Kabeljauwbeek contract is the second-largest Dutch solar PPA by capacity that Enerdatics records for 2023 and 2024, behind Eneco's 110 MW, 10-year solar PPA with Air Products.
Why put a solar farm under wind turbines?
Because the site already has what new projects struggle to find. A wind farm comes with land agreements, an access road and, above all, a grid connection. In the Netherlands, where grid capacity is scarce, adding solar panels to an existing connection is often faster than building a new one.
The two technologies also complement each other. Solar peaks around midday and in summer. Wind tends to be stronger at night and in winter. Placed on one site, they use a shared connection more evenly across the day and the year than either would alone.
That is the logic of the Kabeljauwbeek arrangement. Eneco has fitted about 88,000 panels beneath five turbines that are already in place. The result is a 51 MW solar farm in Woensdrecht, in the province of Noord-Brabant, due to be fully operational by early 2025.
What does pay as nominated mean for KPN?
It means KPN takes on part of the job of matching supply and demand. Leap's record describes the mechanism as requiring KPN to match its energy purchases with the renewable energy available from the solar and wind farms.
It helps to compare it with the more common alternative. Under a pay-as-produced contract, the buyer takes whatever the plant generates, hour by hour, and pays for it. The generator never has to forecast. The buyer carries all the shape and timing risk.
In general, under a nominated structure, purchases are set against expected production in advance rather than simply accepted after the fact. That asks more of the buyer's energy management, but it gives a large, steady consumer like a telecoms network more control over how renewable supply lines up with its own load.
The wording in Leap's record refers to both the solar and the wind farms. That is consistent with a contract written around a shared site, where output from two technologies feeds the same connection.
How much power does 51 MW deliver?
About 47 GWh a year, according to the contract. That works out at a capacity factor of roughly 10.5 percent, meaning the panels produce on average about a tenth of what they would if they ran at full power all year. That is typical for solar in northern Europe, where winter days are short and cloud cover is frequent.
The low capacity factor is exactly why the shared site matters. A standalone solar farm of this size would leave its grid connection idle for most hours. Sharing that connection with turbines that often turn when the sun is down makes much better use of it.
Where does Kabeljauwbeek sit among Dutch PPAs?
Near the top for solar. Enerdatics records 25 power purchase agreements in the Netherlands across 2023 and 2024, of which 13 are for solar. None of the 25 discloses a tariff, so the comparison runs on size and length rather than price.
By capacity, KPN's 51 MW contract is the second-largest Dutch solar PPA in that period. The largest is also an Eneco contract: a 110 MW, 10-year solar PPA with Air Products announced in February 2024. Eneco is the supplier, alone or with a partner, on 7 of the 25 Dutch PPAs Leap records for those two years, more than any other seller.
Enerdatics' data shows that 15 years is the standard term for Dutch solar PPAs that disclose one. Of the 13 solar contracts in 2023 and 2024, eight state a duration, and six of those run for 15 years. KPN's contract matches that norm, while the Air Products deal is one of only two at 10 years.
What does the deal signal for Dutch corporate buyers?
That buyers are building portfolios rather than signing single contracts. KPN is combining three sources: on-site solar on 40 of its technical buildings, this offsite solar contract with Eneco, and future supply from the Ecowende offshore wind farm. Together they are meant to lift its sustainable share above 60 percent by 2027.
Ecowende is a recurring name in Dutch corporate procurement. Google has also contracted output from it, as part of a Dutch offshore wind deal with Shell and Eneco, and Leap records further Ecowende contracts with buyers including LyondellBasell and Albert Heijn. Offshore wind gives large volumes. Onshore solar on shared sites fills a different part of the day.
For Eneco, the deal shows how a supplier can get more out of an established wind site. Co-locating solar with an existing wind farm creates a new asset on land that is already developed, and a long contract with a large corporate buyer turns that asset into bankable revenue.
Frequently asked questions
What did KPN sign with Eneco? KPN signed a 15-year power purchase agreement with Eneco, announced on 16 May 2024, to buy more than 47 GWh a year from the 51 MW Kabeljauwbeek solar farm from 2025.
Where is the Kabeljauwbeek solar farm? It is in Woensdrecht, Noord-Brabant, in the Netherlands, with about 88,000 panels installed beneath the five turbines of the existing Kabeljauwbeek wind farm.
How does the KPN contract compare with other Dutch solar PPAs? At 51 MW it is the second-largest Dutch solar PPA Enerdatics records for 2023 and 2024, and its 15-year term matches six of the eight Dutch solar contracts that disclose a duration.
Ready to get deal-ready answers in seconds? Try Enerdatics Leap AI and access verified intelligence across M&A, financings, PPAs, projects, and energy market developments through natural language.
.jpeg)
