The Dutch greenhouse horticulture sector has been actively contributing to the energy system for many years, for example through CHP installations and heat exchange. With the SPROUT project, we are taking the next essential step: transforming greenhouses into smart, sustainable energy hubs.
We are proud to share that SPROUT has been awarded a MOOI subsidy from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO). With this support, eFuelution is working on a practical energy system concept in which greenhouses not only use energy more efficiently, but also function as flexible assets within the broader energy system. By developing and testing the concept in a realistic greenhouse environment, the project strongly focuses on real-world applicability and scalability across the sector.
Within SPROUT, eFuelution explores and demonstrates how different energy carriers — electricity, heat, and renewable molecules — can be optimally combined within a single greenhouse environment. Through smart control strategies, a greenhouse can switch between producing, consuming, storing, and supplying energy, depending on what the energy system requires at any given moment.
Within the project, eFuelution is responsible for the Energy Management System (EMS). This EMS acts as the brain of the energy hub, ensuring that all energy flows are optimized in an integrated way, taking into account technical constraints, economic incentives, and overall system impact. In doing so, we help turn the concept into a practically deployable solution.
SPROUT is a collaboration between TU Delft (TPM and Mechanical Engineering), The Green Village, the Innovation & Impact Centre, Division Q, eFuelution, Resourcefully, Westland Infra, Leiden University, and Wageningen University & Research.