Right-wing parties in the senate have refused to pass legislation aimed at formally closing the Groningen gas fields, much to the anger of the province and mines minister Hans Vijlbrief.

The senate was supposed to vote on legislation to formalise the closure of the gas fields next week but on Tuesday senators from BBB, VVD, PVV, JA21 and 50Plus said they wanted more information about gas supply security before making a decision.

Senator Caspar van den Berg (VVD) said there were still questions to be answered about supply security. “We should not look at a single interest. In a fast-changing geopolitical world, we must consider supply security. There is a great demand for energy in the Netherlands,” he said.

But the decision to delay, particularly by parties which did well in the November general election, has infuriated local officials. The PVV was the biggest party in the province with 22% of the vote while the BBB was by far the biggest in the provincial elections.

“This is not a good day for Groningers’ faith in politics,” king’s commissioner for the province René Paas told broadcaster NOS. “And that goes for me as well,” he said.

The law, which was passed by 146 out of 150 MPs in March, is meant to prevent more earthquakes caused by gas extraction from occurring in the province.

“The senate is part of the law-making system and its members are well aware of the promises that have been made to the people of Groningen,” Paas said.  The move confirms the widespread skepticism that met the end of regular gas production in Groningen in October last year and people are “shocked, flabbergasted, furious or worse, cynical,” he said.

An investigation carried out last year showed that the interests of the people of Groningen were systematically ignored by both the government and oil companies, and making money remained the dominant concern when natural gas extraction started causing earthquakes.

More than 1,600 earthquakes have been triggered by drilling since the 1980s, damaging 85,000 buildings. Only around 30% of houses have been made safe again and many Groningers are still waiting for compensation following cumbersome prodedures.

Mining minister Hans Vijlbrief, who briefly restarted gas production in January because of a cold snap, reacted angrily to the move, suggesting the real reason for the delay may be an agreement between the parties which are to form the next government.

Games

“If political games are being played over the backs of the people of Groningen that would be a disgrace,” he told radio programme Spraakmakers.

Vijlbrief said he would anwer the gas supply queries as soon as possible, allowing the senate to reconvene for a vote this month.

Jan Wigboldus of the local organisation Groninger Gasberaad said the senate’s argument holds no water. “There is enough certainty,” he told Trouw. “The storage at Norg and Grijpskerk are full and we had a mild winter. If we continue pumping gas many people will suffer psychological damage,” he told the paper.

The Netherlands imports natural gas from Norway and the United Kingdom and liquified natural gas (LNG) from the United States and the Middle East. In 2023 some 9% of Dutch gas imports came from Russia but imports to Europe from that country will be completely phased out by 2027.