Making smarter use of the grid: how TenneT is accelerating innovation scouting
Challenge
TenneT established a temporary team, Customer Connections & Capacity (CCC), to free up additional capacity and connect customers faster. For that, innovation is indispensable, but how do you bring that into an organization that is primarily about reliability and risk management?
Results
Together with nlmtd, TenneT developed an innovation scouting playbook: a structured method for openly formulating challenges, identifying market solutions, and running proofs of concept. This created not only new ways of utilizing capacity but also a cultural shift toward open innovation and greater collaboration with external partners.
Client
TenneT is the national grid operator for high-voltage connections in the Netherlands. The company is responsible for a stable, reliable, and future-proof electricity grid.
In brief
The energy transition demands more from the electricity grid than ever. To free up capacity faster, TenneT established the Customer Connections & Capacity (CCC) team, with one aim: to connect customers faster by innovating smarter. Together with nlmtd, TenneT developed an innovation scouting playbook, a structured approach to formulating challenges openly, finding market solutions, and testing proofs-of-concept.
The approach produced not only tangible results, such as increased usable capacity and faster innovation pathways, but also a cultural shift toward open collaboration and experimentation.
Together with nlmtd, we made innovation tangible: from design thinking to market challenges. That gave us momentum and a new way of thinking.
Challenge
Congestion requires new ways of working
With the rapid electrification underway, the task is straightforward: the electricity grid must be vastly expanded and operated more intelligently over a short period. “We see that three to five times more infrastructure is needed than is currently in place. We can never solve that by building alone,” says Han Stegeman, director a.i. CCC at TenneT. That’s why they decided to establish CCC in 2024. This multidisciplinary team was tasked with removing obstacles and organizing acceleration. Han: “Where normally several teams and even more steps were needed to connect a customer, we cut through the process and brought things forward by tackling different steps together in parallel. This is how we show that it can be done faster.” In addition, TenneT sought new forms of innovation: what is available on the market? How can we leverage that to address grid congestion? nlmtd was engaged to help think through the approach and develop an innovation scouting playbook.
Process
Together with nlmtd, TenneT initiated a design thinking process to identify the key challenges and translate them into a concrete innovation scouting playbook. This structured approach, from formulating challenges to testing proofs of concept, accelerated innovation, made it more focused, and made it more open to market feedback.
Deepdive in the process
1. Design thinking & heatmap
With the support of nlmtd, a design thinking process was initiated. This resulted in a heatmap of the main challenges, with a common thread: innovation is crucial to progress.
2. Innovation Scouting Playbook.
nlmtd translated this into a concrete playbook, with iterative steps (from divergence to convergence).
- Retrieve & prioritize challenges: broadly retrieve, then sharply prioritize in a portfolio.
- Challenge formulation: What do we all know about the problem, and how do we reduce it to its essence? And what is the intended effect of the solution?
- Activate and select market: first, publicize (via a platform such as Rethinking Energy) and actively scout. Then review submissions internally, have finalists pitch, and then engage in conversation.
- Proof-of-Concept(s): execute in short sprints, then decide: scale up or stop?
Tender vs. Challenge.
As you can see, this looks suspiciously like a tender. Yet there is a big difference. A tender specifies the solution, but the risk is that you end up with what you already know. A challenge specifies the desired effect and thus allows the market to find surprising routes. Roel (nlmtd): “You don’t know what you don’t know. By opening up the question, you also get solutions that you would never have thought of yourself.”
3. Implementing Challenges
The first set of challenges was published on the Rethinking Energy platform. Worldwide calls attracted dozens of entries, which were narrowed down to a few proofs-of-concept through a rigorous selection process. This involved intensive collaboration with technical experts within TenneT, who thus became directly involved in the innovation.
Results
Proof that things can be done differently
One of the first successes was the Overhead Line Monitoring Challenge. Han: “We received more than 40 entries. Eventually, three parties collaborated to implement a proof of concept. With this, we saw, for example, that we can temporarily send more power through existing lines. Before this, we didn’t think this was possible.” Roel: “We can also map much faster where external constraints, such as minimum safety distances or electromagnetic compatibility, are normative so that we can act on them. Finally, we have made new strides in virtual inspections using drones to map asset health more quickly and accurately. “
The approach yielded several results:
- Acceleration: proofs-of-concept in a few months instead of years.
- New capacity: demonstrable additional space in the existing grid.
- Ecosystem thinking: not making everything yourself, but building with specialized partners and making them work together.
Han emphasizes that it is precisely the combination of doing and learning that works: “Our motto is: doing is the new thinking. You don’t have to be ashamed of the first iteration. It can be wild and ambitious, and after that, we will hone it.”
We have shown that this works. Now the challenge is to scale it up: more teams, more impact, and, above all, to make sure this becomes the new way of working.
Next steps
After the first successful challenges, TenneT wants to embed the approach within CCC and, more broadly, across the organization. In doing so, there are three priorities:
- Scaling up proven concepts: In the coming months, the first solutions, such as overhead line monitoring, will be integrated into operational systems.
- Plotting more challenges: new ones around grid congestion and smart capacity utilization are already on the agenda.
- Embedding the playbook: The innovation scouting playbook is being further developed to enable other departments and grid operators to use it.
Conclusion
The playbook and the first challenges form the basis for a new way of working at TenneT. Innovation is no longer seen as merely aspirational but as a necessary condition for achieving the energy transition. Roel: “In addition to faster construction, better utilization of the grid is crucial to facilitating the energy transition in a timely, affordable, and sustainable manner. This is not only about technology, but also about mindset. By working together and asking open questions, you make room for solutions that really make a difference.” Han concludes, “The operational business pays our salary, but innovation pays our pension. With this approach, we have shown that we can move forward faster and smarter.”
Want to know more? We worked on this!
Roel Engels
Roel Engels
