Energinet has introduced a temporary pause on signing new grid connection agreements after demand for electricity capacity surged to around 60GW, far exceeding Denmark’s maximum consumption of about 7GW.
The company said the pace and scale of requests from data centres, batteries and Power-to-X plants have pushed the transmission network close to exhaustion.
Kim Willerslev Jakobsen, director of system responsibility at Energinet, said the pause is needed to create “calm and overview” so capacity can be allocated responsibly.
The halt will last for three months or until Energinet has assessed the implications of current demand and implemented measures to expand capacity.
Projects with signed grid connection agreements will not be affected, but all others will face longer processing times.
Energinet is also accelerating work on an emergency package designed to free up capacity and strengthen coordination between the transmission and distribution grids.
The scheme focuses on faster investment decisions, short-term technical measures and tighter, uniform prioritisation of the grid customer queue.
Kim Willerslev Jakobsen said the electricity grid operates as “one integrated system”, requiring faster decisions and tightened prioritisation to support stability and organic growth.
Energinet will concentrate resources on the most mature projects and those capable of generating concrete capacity effects within existing regulatory frameworks.
The company noted that rising demand and long grid queues are being seen across Europe as networks face pressures they were not originally designed for.
Kim Willerslev Jakobsen said electrification remains essential for climate, competitiveness and security of supply, and the pause is a necessary step to ensure responsible use of capacity and a grid adapted to the “new reality”.