"The government should take a more active role as a shareholder in companies to foster sustainability and strategic autonomy"
In the report "" , the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) advises that governments should more strongly consider becoming shareholders in private companies and become more active shareholders in existing holdings (e.g., NS, KLM, Port of Rotterdam). State participation can foster sustainability and strategic autonomy. Jasper Sluijs, Tessa Dool, and Toon Meelen were commissioned to write an essay, which the Rli used in its advice to the government.
"Why are wind farms in the Dutch North Sea in the hands of government investment funds from Norway and Qatar, without the Dutch government playing a role?", asks Jasper Sluijs. His research focuses on state-owned enterprises and the role of state ownership in sustainability challenges. Together with Toon Meelen and Tessa Dool, he wrote an advisory essay commissioned by the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure.
"The government does not need to outsource sustainability transitions to private companies and foreign investors: as the owner of our companies, it can drive transitions," says Dool. Toon Meelen en were affiliated with the Copernicus Institute for Sustainable Development at Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 during the writing process. Dool now works at the Wiardi Beckman Foundation, and Toon Meelen continues his work at Utrecht 木瓜福利影视, conducting research on innovations at the intersection of transport, energy, and housing.
Recommendations
The researchers' recommendations, in brief:
- The government can play a more active role in existing partnerships to promote sustainability. Crucial conditions for this are a functioning constitutional framework and principles of good governance.
- For wind, solar, and batteries, greater public participation is desirable to accelerate projects and better distribute revenues. National government involvement can prevent local fragmentation. For offshore wind energy, options can be explored where several countries bordering the North Sea jointly become shareholders in wind farms.
- For district heating networks, the transition to government participation is well advanced. Government participation is risky due to technological uncertainties. A public provider that leases alternative technology (heat pumps) is desirable.
Lots of media attention
The advice of the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) received a lot of media attention in all major newspapers in the Netherlands: