Anyone who knows the history of energy technology in the Netherlands knows that the Lifeport region and Arnhem in particular, has held a special position for almost a century. From 1927, KEMA began as an inspection institute for the Dutch electricity sector, testing electrical equipment under the well-known KEMA-KEUR label. Testing, validating and certifying became the strength of the region. It became the foundation of a culture in which testing, validating and certifying became second nature. It is no coincidence that leading organisations such as DEKRA and TÜV Rheinland are also located here.

I still see that tradition today. Innovators from all over the Netherlands, and beyond, actively seek out the region when they want to test. RIFT, a startup from Eindhoven, deliberately chose Arnhem to test their technology at the Energy Demo Field (EDF). That is no exception. Companies such as Borg, MoonWatt, QuinteQ Energy and other young technology companies also chose this region because they find here a combination that is seldom found elsewhere: space, expertise and an ecosystem that understands that testing is a serious phase of innovation, not just a formality.

What they find here is more than a physical location. They find a region that invests in the conditions that make testing possible: zones with relaxed regulations, short lines of communication with fire brigade and environmental services, grid connections that are not immediately locked up, permits that can move at the pace of innovation, and a network of partners that stands around innovators. That willingness to “move with the new” is at least as valuable as the presence of test equipment.

How Connectr builds (out) test environments

In the past five years, we at Connectr, together with partners in the Lifeport region, have consciously built a series of Shared Facilities: shared facilities that the innovation ecosystem can make use of. For example, the Energy Demo Field at Cleantech Park Arnhem offers companies the opportunity to test their systems under realistic conditions, not in a laboratory, but outdoors and at scale. The new test lab of ElaadNL, where even heavy electric vehicles can be tested, has now become a national facility for validating charging technology. And with the recent start of construction of Integratr, an innovation campus for electrification of harbour vehicles, excavators and other heavy equipment, the region takes another step forward. These facilities do not overlap; they are complementary. Together, they form an ecosystem in which virtually every step of the development and scaling phase can be carried out.

Testing and validating as a crucial step for scaling

This test infrastructure makes it possible not only to technically assess innovations, but also to understand how they behave in a system context. Because the energy transition has long been about more than isolated components. It is about the interaction between systems: between charging infrastructure and grid capacity, between battery storage and safety, between power electronics and regulation. Such issues cannot be solved on paper — you have to see, feel and measure them.

That is why I believe that Connectr’s test facilities are a strategic advantage of our innovation ecosystem. It not only accelerates technological innovation, but also increases the chances that innovations will actually reach the market. Testing here is not a side show; it is an instrument to bring the energy transition from talking to doing. And precisely because of this, the region becomes a place where national and international parties come not to visit, but to make progress.

If you want to know what the energy future looks like, you have to look at the place where that future is tested. And that is, increasingly, here.