LOCAL CONTENT | SPECIAL REPORT
a specific technology area. Local content requirements have not yet been publicly expressed by the authorities in the Netherlands. Senior government officials explained the government wanted to refrain from establishing too strict criteria in the procurement process in order to keep the process in balance with other project objectives. They indicate that there are trade-offs between local content requirements, price, risk and speed: “to keep competition reasonable, healthy and complete, we have to stay as open as possible so the vendors can tell us what they can offer within those trade-offs”. The ANVS as regulatory authority in the Netherlands
has the mandate to supervise if a reactor and all its components fulfill the safety requirements. Rick Bulk, head of the licensing team from the ANVS has stated that nothing from a regulatory perspective requires the supply chain to be European and that whilst having a non-EU supply chain would complicate the ANVS work, it would not make it impossible. The authorities’ strategy so far has been to map
the capabilities of Dutch companies which could be involved in non-nuclear construction and help them reach out to potential vendors, through the organisation of events such as Made for Nuclear which took place in November 2025. As Ben Engel, quartermaster for the province of Brabant explains, “we are trying to create a more structured, less chaotic matchmaking process between vendors and Dutch companies”. Involvement of local companies is also high on the priority list of regional authorities. For instance, Tractebel has been tasked by the province of Zeeland and Impuls Zeeland with identifying how local companies could be involved. According to Hans Koster, Zeeland wants to give local companies the best opportunity to go through the nuclear qualification process. Senior government officials explained that
authorities have also invested in the human capital agenda, putting money into the University of Delft, a hub for nuclear knowledge. According to Mart Van Bracht, director of Program System Integration for Top Sector Energy, training is a key concern, the average age in the sector currently being around 55. Training courses, such as radiation protection, are taught mostly by people over 65, often retired.
What has the Dutch supply chain to offer? With the last and only Dutch nuclear plant, Borssele, having been built in the 1970s, the Netherlands’ local industry has limited experience working on nuclear projects. Nonetheless, Ben Engel estimates that there are around
100 companies in the Netherlands that are qualified to contribute to nuclear projects. The companies often mentioned include BAM, Mobilis, Heijmans, ASML, NXP, Prodrive Technologies, or Sioux Technologies. According to Tractebel Managing Director in the Netherlands Deepak Narasimhamurthy, the Netherlands has the potential to offer to Tier 2 and lower tier nuclear power plant components as against Tier 1, which require high-end qualifications. But for civil works, infrastructure and owner-scope activities (earthworks, roads, rail, housing), including spinoff and spillovers, local firms can absolutely deliver.” For Baars, director of government affairs at Urenco,
said with regard to the large nuclear power plants, that the government could focus on creating local high value jobs, for instance, instrumentation & control, cybersecurity, or IT. Instead of insisting on a 60% local content target,
more focus should be put on ensuring that the Dutch value chain not only delivers domestically, but also across Europe and possibly globally. Tractebel’s Narasimhamurthy believes localisation is key, but not
www.neimagazine.com | May 2026 | 21
Following the withdrawal of KHNP, EDF and Westinghouse are the two remaining contenders aiming to build two reactors in the Netherlands. Source: Westinghouse
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