NS has entered into a long-term contract with the electricity company Essent for the supply of electricity to run the trains. From 2007 until 2015 NS can rely on sufficient supply capacity for a set price formula. At present, NS consumes about 1.4 Terra Watt-hour annually. That amounts to around 1 percent of all electricity consumption in the Netherlands. By choosing Essent, NS has chosen a partner with its own power stations and expertise in the market for electricity. Financial details of the contract - the largest electricity deal ever to be concluded in the Netherlands - will not be disclosed.

The fact that a bulk consumer such as NS opts for a long-term energy contract may be considered progressive. Often, large buyers still enter into short-term contracts of 1 or 2 years. NS financial director Marcel Niggebrugge: "Many uncertainties permeate the energy market. Scarcity and price fluctuations can have big consequences and electricity becomes ever more expensive. This contract fluctuates with world-wide trends in energy without being influenced by ad hoc fluctuations, and it offers certainty for a long period of time, both for NS and Essent. It is of enormous importance for NS, for the travellers, and for mobility in the Netherlands that NS diminishes risks to supply and price of energy in this way. You could say that NS - through Essent - has virtually called in a power station supplying our trains with electricity for many years to come.

From January 1, 2007 until January 1, 2015 Essent will ensure the supply of electricity necessary to run our trains in the Netherlands. At the moment, NS consumes some 1.4 Terra Watt-hour annually for this purpose. The need for electricity may grow in the coming years because of the opening of the high-speed train line and the expansion of the NS-timetable. On the other hand, the need for energy per seat kilometre is coming down as a result of the energy-efficiency programme of NS. The most up-to-date trains of NS are very energy efficient and even have the ability to generate electricity while breaking, which can be transferred to other trains that are in need of electricity at that moment.

The supply of electricity for the Betuwe-route is not part of the contract because this new railway has been solely intended for freight transport.

More information: NS press office + 31 (0)30-2357070 or Irwin Broen, spokesman for Essent, telephone +31 (0)6-52401918.

About NS

NS plays an important role in mobility in the Netherlands. It is the aim of the company - turnover in 2004: 2.9 billion Euro - to carry passengers safely, punctually, and comfortably via attractive stations. NS is the largest passenger-carrier via rail in the Netherlands. The main policy objectives are: punctuality, providing information and service, contributing to social safety, creating sufficient transport capacity, and ensuring clean trains and stations. With 5,000 daily rail journeys NS carries 1 million passengers. For this purpose NS has 2800 carriages with 240,000 seats at its disposal. NS maintains 388 stations in the Netherlands. In the United Kingdom NS runs - together with her British partner Serco - two transport concessions: Mersey Rail around Liverpool, and Northern Rail in the north of England. Nearly 25,000 NS employees deliver our services to our clients.

The Dutch railway network is not NS property. Maintenance of the infrastructure (rails, signals, overhead wires, etc.) as well as rail traffic control are tasks of ProRail.

The 'Inspection Verkeer en Waterstaat' (Transport and Public Works) supervises rail safety in the Netherlands.

About Essent

Essent - annual turnover in 2004: 7.4 billion Euro - is the largest energy company of the Netherlands. Essent produces, sells, and transports (green) electricity and natural gas. The company is also an influential player in analogue and digital cable television, is active as a cable internet provider, and the environmental division of the company processes waste into energy and residual electricity. Essent employs 12,003 people in total.